Television footage shows lava and smoke after the eruption of the Sakurajima volcano in Kagoshima Prefecture, which erupted around 12:00 p.m. in Lisbon. The volcano, which constantly emits smoke and ash, is one of Japan’s biggest tourist attractions.
Sunday’s eruption spewed ash about 2.5 kilometers from the crater, and Japan’s Meteorological Agency in a statement raised Sakurajima’s alert level to level five, urging residents to evacuate.
Before the eruption, the warning signal was at level three, which prohibits access to the mountain. “Residential areas in the cities of Arimura and Furusato, three kilometers from the summit of Sakurajima volcano, should be on high alert,” the agency said.
According to the city of Kagoshima, the two towns have 77 residents. According to public channel NHK, there has been no damage so far.
Japan has dozens of active volcanoes and is located in the so-called Pacific “Ring of Fire,” where most of the world’s earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are recorded. Sakurajima used to be an island, but due to other eruptions it is now connected to a peninsula.
The Asian country issued an evacuation alert when the volcano on Kuchinorabu Island in Kagoshima erupted in 2015.
