Volcano eruption in southern Japan causes massive smoke plume

Mount Aso, the largest volcano in Japan, erupted Wednesday, sending a massive plume of gray smoke, rock and ash into the sky.

Smoke rises from a crater of Mount Aso, Kumamoto prefecture, southwestern Japan, on Wednesday. (184916+0900/)

In the immediate aftermath, the Japan Meteorological Agency warned hikers and residents to avoid the 5,223-foot mountain located on the southern island of Kyushu.

Despite the scary scene, no injuries or damage have been reported, so far. Mount Aso’s 1953 eruption killed six and injured more than 90, and another one five years later killed 12.

The smoke rose as high as 11,480 feet above the crater, with lava and rock pouring out along the western slope of the mountain, the agency said.

Rocks were blown out of the crater in several directions, with the furthest landing about 3,000 feet away. Ashfall was reported in in several towns in the Kumamoto and neighboring Miyazaki prefectures.

As one of the world’s largest active volcanos, Mount Aso has become a popular tourist destination in Japan.

Japan has been experiencing a lot of seismic activity lately. In August, an underwater volcano eruption caused sunken World War II-era ships to rise from the ocean’s depths.

With News Wire Services