Advance party ascends Mt. Ontake prior to search
The Yomiuri ShimbunNAGANO — An advance survey party was sent up Mt. Ontake on Wednesday to restart the search for six people who remain missing after the volcano erupted in September last year, which...
View ArticleAuthorities eye resumption of Mt. Ontake search
The Yomiuri ShimbunNAGANO — Authorities plan to send an advance party to Mt. Ontake in July to restart search activities for those missing after the mountain’s eruption last September, it has been...
View ArticleShelters set up for search parties on Mt. Ontake
The Yomiuri Shimbun Temporary shelters for search parties were set up Saturday morning near the summit of Mt. Ontake, which erupted in September last year, leaving 57 people dead and six others...
View ArticleSearch resumes for missing climbers on Mt. Ontake
The Yomiuri Shimbun NAGANO — The search resumed Wednesday for people missing as a result of an eruption at Mt. Ontake last September — 9½ months after the operation was suspended due to weather risks....
View ArticlePrayers offered 1 year after deadly Mt. Ontake eruption
The Yomiuri ShimbunNAGANO — Visitors on Saturday offered silent prayers and flowers in Kiso and Otaki in Nagano Prefecture for victims of last year’s eruption of Mt. Ontake, the eve of the first...
View ArticleSurveillance should be enhanced to prevent future volcanic disasters
The Yomiuri Shimbun The signs of an eruption must be accurately detected to secure the safety of climbers and local residents. Lessons learned from the disaster caused by the eruption of Mt. Ontake...
View ArticleLocal govts near Mt. Hakone set for long haul
By Yuki Iwashima and Takashi Maemura / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers With no sign of an end to the ongoing volcanic activity on Mt. Hakone, local governments in that area are stepping up preparations...
View ArticleAlert level raised for Mt. Hakone
The Yomiuri ShimbunThe Japan Meteorological Agency has raised the eruption alert level for Mt. Hakone, which straddles the border between Kanagawa and Shizuoka prefectures, warning of a possible...
View ArticleAgency on alert for small Hakone blast
By Takashi Maemura and Norikazu Fukuura / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff WritersThere is currently no sign of a large eruption on Mt. Hakone, so the Japan Meteorological Agency is on alert for a small eruption...
View ArticleMt. Aso alert raised after eruption
The Yomiuri Shimbun Mt. Aso erupted in Kumamoto Prefecture on Monday morning, prompting authorities to raise the alert level for the volcano from Level 2 to Level 3. The No. 1 crater on Mt. Aso’s...
View ArticleMountain-climbing difficulty lists planned
The Yomiuri Shimbun Shizuoka, Yamanashi and Niigata prefectures, where popular mountains such as Mt. Fuji, Mt. Kitadake and Mt. Myoko are located, have decided to publish a list of difficulty for the...
View ArticleVolcanic activity seen increasing around nation
By Takashi Ito / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer Kuchinoerabujima island is not only the place witnessing volcanic activity since the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. In addition to the steam eruption on...
View ArticleEffective use of volcanic eruption warnings needed to reduce damage
The Yomiuri ShimbunGiven that volcanic activity has picked up at several locations across Japan, we hope arrangements will be made to enable “eruption notices” to function effectively. Eruptions are...
View ArticleZoomUp / Sakurajima eruptions keep residents alert
By Ichiro Ohara / The Yomiuri ShimbunKAGOSHIMA — After I set up my camera about four kilometers from one of Sakurajima’s craters, a huge pillar of fire suddenly erupted in the dark night sending lava...
View ArticleVolcano woes beset Hakone / A month on, town hit by 46% drop in reservations
By Takashi Maemura and Nobuyuki Tange / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff WritersOne month after a minor eruption was confirmed on Mt. Hakone, visitor numbers to the hot spring resort in Kanagawa Prefecture remain...
View ArticleVolcanic eruptions often witnessed across nation
The Yomiuri Shimbun Mt. Shindake on Kuchinoerabujima island erupted often in the past, causing serious damage. In its eruption in 1841, many people were killed. In 1933 and 1934, it erupted many times,...
View ArticleEvacuation drill held on Mt. Fuji
The Yomiuri Shimbun Ahead of the start of Mt. Fuji’s climbing season on July 1, the Yamanashi prefectural government, a local disaster prevention council and others held an evacuation drill on Thursday...
View ArticleSystems gave no warning of eruption / Lessons from last year’s blast aid...
By Takashi Maemura and Makoto Furuno / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff WritersThe eruption last week of Mt. Shindake on Kuchinoerabujima island triggered the nation’s first Level 5 volcanic alert, the highest...
View ArticleWording for volcanic alert to be revised
The Yomiuri Shimbun The Japan Meteorological Agency will revise the wording used for the lowest level of its volcanic alert system from the current “normal,” to urge climbers to be more cautious. The...
View ArticleFacilities near volcanoes to make evacuation plans
The Yomiuri ShimbunThe government aims to require evacuation plans for operators of hotels, ropeways and other high-traffic facilities — in addition to local authorities near active volcanoes under...
View ArticleJust 37% of local govts ready for eruptions
The Yomiuri ShimbunAmong the 132 municipalities near 47 volcanoes being monitored for eruptions, 48 — or only 37 percent — of relevant local governments have compiled evacuation plans, according to a...
View ArticleOne body found in Mt. Ontake searchers
Jiji Press NAGANO (Jiji Press) — A body was discovered on Mt. Ontake on Friday during the resumed search for six people missing since the mountain erupted last autumn and was confirmed Saturday as that...
View ArticlePrayers for victims 2 years after Mt. Ontake eruption
Jiji Press KISO, Nagano (Jiji Press) — A memorial ceremony was held Tuesday to mark the second anniversary of an eruption of Mt. Ontake that left 58 people dead and five others missing, and was the...
View ArticleMt. Ontake opens to climbers
Jiji Press OTAKI, Nagano (Jiji Press) — A ceremony to mark the opening to climbers of Mt. Ontake in central Japan was held here on Wednesday, with some 150 participants offering silent prayers...
View ArticleSmartphone app looks to make mountaineering safer
The Yomiuri ShimbunA smartphone app has been developed that not only allows people to apply for climbing registration and travel insurance, but automatically activates when a person approaches the...
View ArticleClimbing registrations increase 23%
The Yomiuri Shimbun The number of climbing registrations (see below) submitted to municipalities or police across the nation in 2015 increased by 23 percent from the previous year, rising by about...
View ArticleTokyo univ. to help volcanic disaster preparation
The Yomiuri ShimbunTokyo Metropolitan University (TMU) in Hachioji, Tokyo, is scheduled to establish in April a new research center that will conduct studies on volcanoes, it has been learned. The...
View ArticleMeasures need to be reexamined to prepare for major disasters
The Yomiuri Shimbun We should reexamine our preparedness against natural disasters as their occurrence is unpredictable. On Tuesday, Disaster Prevention Day, antidisaster drills are to be held at...
View ArticleVolcanic eruption alert system slated to start
The Yomiuri Shimbun The Japan Meteorological Agency will launch on Tuesday a rapid alert system for volcanic eruptions on 47 mountains that are under 24-hour surveillance, so that climbers and others...
View ArticleGovernment to utilize mountain cottages as eruption shelters
The Yomiuri Shimbun The government is planning to utilize existing mountain cottages on volcanoes across the nation as shelters for climbers in the event of an eruption. It was learned Saturday that...
View ArticleBoiling water likely cause of Mt. Aso blast
The Yomiuri ShimbunAn eruption at Mt. Aso in Kumamoto Prefecture early Saturday morning was likely a phreatic eruption, in which underground water in the volcano was heated by magma to cause an...
View Article‘Small eruption’ at Mt. Asama
Jiji Press Mt. Asama is believed to have had a very small eruption Tuesday morning, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. Clouds are hanging over the summit of the 2,568-meter mountain that straddles...
View ArticleVolcano broods over vacant island
The Yomiuri Shimbun Continued eruptions of Mt. Shindake on Kuchinoerabujima island in Kagoshima Prefecture likely stopped at 10:50 a.m. on Saturday, the Japan Meteorological Agency announced. After the...
View ArticlePrecautionary steps prove successful in evacuating islanders after eruption
The Yomiuri Shimbun Harm to people was negligible despite the occurrence of a large-scale volcanic explosion. This impressed upon us the importance of precautionary measures. Mt. Shindake on...
View Article2 new craters observed on Nishinoshima
The Yomiuri Shimbun Lava has been seen flowing out of craters on Nishinoshima island — where a volcanic eruption recently occurred for the first time in 1 year and five months — reaching the coast on...
View ArticleMt. Fuji climbers to be offered safety gear including helmets
The Yomiuri Shimbun FUJINOMIYA, Shizuoka — About 3,100 climbing helmets will be located at mountain cottages and other facilities on four paths up Mt. Fuji to enhance the safety of climbers, it has...
View ArticleCalling on protective spirits
The Yomiuri ShimbunA lion dance procession heralds the opening of some of the trails on Mt. Ontake on Sunday, which...
View ArticleBlustery weather brings heavy snowfall over weekend
The Yomiuri Shimbun With the severest cold spell of the season sweeping across the Japanese archipelago, heavy snow struck again on Friday, mainly in the Tohoku and Hokuriku regions. The adverse...
View ArticleGovt to clarify danger levels of volcanoes
The Yomiuri ShimbunExpert advisory government panels on the prevention of volcanic disasters have compiled a final report for revising volcanic activity observation methods and eruption warning systems...
View ArticleNew steps mulled to help volcano hikers / 29 local govts try to better info...
The Yomiuri ShimbunSince the eruption of Mt. Ontake last September, 29 prefectures and municipalities have taken new measures, or are discussing taking new measures, on how to provide volcano...
View ArticleTeam returns from Mt. Ontake
Authorities in central Japan have had a team check areas near the top of Mount Ontake before possibly resuming a search for people who went missing when it erupted last year. 57 hikers died when the...
View ArticleExpert: Possibility eruption was magmatic
The Yomiuri Shimbun The explosive eruption on Mt. Shindake in Kagoshima Prefecture on Friday is likely to have involved the direct ejection of magma, or direct subterranean contact between magma and...
View ArticleVolcanic alert raised for Sakurajima in Kagoshima
Jiji Press TOKYO (Jiji Press) — The Japan Meteorological Agency on Saturday raised its volcanic alert for Sakurajima in Kagoshima Prefecture from Level 3 to Level 4, calling on people in nearby areas...
View ArticleSakurajima evacuation advisory lifted
The Yomiuri ShimbunKAGOSHIMA — Kagoshima city authorities rescinded an evacuation advisory for the area around Sakurajima on Saturday, citing a lower risk of a major eruption. The decision affects 77...
View ArticleVolcanic alert issued for Mt. Io
Jiji Press TOKYO (Jiji Press) — The Japan Meteorological Agency on Sunday issued a volcanic alert around the crater of Mt. Io of the Kirishima volcanic group that straddles Miyazaki and Kagoshima...
View ArticleVolcanic alert level raised for Mt. Asama
Jiji Press The Japan Meteorological Agency said Thursday it has raised its volcanic alert level for Mt. Asama from Level 1 to Level 2,...
View ArticleFamilies of volcano victims sue govt
Jiji Press NAGANO (Jiji Press) — Five bereaved families on Wednesday sued the government and the Nagano prefectural government for ¥140 million in total damages over the deadly eruption of...
View Article1.6-meter cinder found
The Yomiuri Shimbun Kyoto University Prof. Takahiro Okura said Tuesday he has found a large oval cinder about 1.6 meters long near the crater of Mt. Aso in Kumamoto Prefecture...
View ArticleBulletproof vest fiber to protect cottage roofs during eruptions
The Yomiuri Shimbun An experiment has shown that a fiber used for bulletproof jackets may help protect the roofs of mountain cottages from cinders flung from a volcano crater. The Cabinet Office...
View ArticleGovt lowers alert level for Mt. Ontake
Jiji Press The Japan Meteorological Agency on Friday lowered the volcanic alert level for Mt. Ontake in central Japan, noting the recent absence of eruptions and a decrease in volcanic earthquakes. The...
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