The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) this Sunday raised the alert for an island in the southwest of the country, following the eruption of the Ontake volcano, which has so far caused no damage or injuries.
After the eruption, the JMA raised the alert for this volcano by one grade, to level three out of a maximum of five.
The move from level two, which restricts the approach to the crater, to level three implies that the approach to the volcano itself has been prohibited.
The small island of Suwanose, belonging to Kagoshima prefecture, is less than 30 square kilometers and has around 70 inhabitants.
Mount Ontake thus joins two other volcanoes currently on alert level three in Kagoshima, the one on the island of Kuchinoerabu, which has been at that level since July, and Sakurajima, located in front of the provincial capital, which is at level three since summer 2022.
Japan has 110 active volcanoes, as it is located on the so-called ‘Pacific Ring of Fire’, where many of the world’s earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are recorded.
The last time Japan issued a maximum evacuation warning for a volcano was when the volcano on Kuchinoerabu Island erupted in 2015.
Source: https://observador.pt/2024/01/14/japao-sobe-nivel-de-alerta-devido-a-erupcao-vulcanica-em-ilha-do-sudoeste/
