A Japanese volcano has erupted, sparking a mass evacuation. Sakurajima, on the country's western major island of Kyushu, began erupting at about 8:05 pm (11:05 GMT) on Sunday, the Japanese Meteorological Agency has said.
Onlookers spotted volcanic stones streaming down at an estimated distance of a whopping 1.5 miles from the volcano, NHK public television said, and the eruption alert level has been raised to the highest possible.
Some areas have been warned to evacuate while residents of the city of Kagoshima were eventually urged to flee, despite previously being told to avoid “entering the danger zone”, the Mirror reports.
Three years ago, Sakurajima spat out ash over three miles high, and is considered one of Japan's most active volcanoes. Footage from Sunday's eruption showed what appeared to be hot lava flowing down one side of the volcano.
Huge red globules could also be seen spitting out while plumes of smoke billowed up into the air. Officials at Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's office were gathering information about the ongoing emergency, it added.
Located across Kagoshima Bay, which separates the city and the volcano by 4.2 km of water, its summit is just 8 km east of the city of Kagoshima. Its proximity means a large eruption could be deadly.
In 1984, an eruption at the volcano shattered the windows of the Kyoto University observatory at the foot of the mountain.
The Japanese archipelago sits atop the Pacific “Ring of Fire ” where there are more than 100 volcanoes. The 2014 eruption of Mount Ontake in central Japan killed 57 people.
Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond - Sign up to our daily newsletter here.
