Volcanic eruption at ski resort kills soldier
A JAPANESE soldier was killed and several other people injured after a volcano erupted near a popular ski resort yesterday, sparking an avalanche and leaving scores stranded.
Footage broadcast on Japanese television showed thick black smoke interspersed with falling rocks rolling down the snow-covered side of the volcano towards a ski slope.
Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said that one of eight members of the Self Defence Forces who had been on a training mission on Mount Kusatsu Shirane, northwest of Tokyo, had died after being hit by volcanic rocks.
His lungs were damaged because of the impact of the rocks, Onodera said.
The other seven soldiers had sustained injuries, he said.
“Black smoke rose from the top of the mountain and we were told to evacuate inside 30 minutes,” a man who was at the resort said.
About 80 people were stranded for hours at a gondola station at the top of the mountain after a power outage.
Television footage showed military helicopters buzzing overhead as people were airlifted to safety.
Yuko Iguchi, an official from the nearby town of Kusatsu, said: “All the people stranded at the summit were brought down to the safe zone. We have not received any injured people among them.”
Another official, Yoichi Takai, said 15 people from Taiwan and four from Britain were among those who were stranded at the peak.
One woman who was trapped at the gondola station said: “There was an eruption in front of my eyes. Black and white plumes came towards me. Then the ski slope went completely black.”
The area had seen heavy snowfall in the hours leading up to the eruption, making the slopes ripe for avalanches.
Japan’s Meteorological Agency urged people to stay away after it detected slight volcanic activity.
Agency official Makoto Saito said the volcano could still spew more rocks and ash, and that there was a risk of further avalanches.
A fire department official said that 10 people had been hurt in the incident, five seriously.
Among the injured were four people hurt by shattered glass while on a ropeway gondola.
Japan, with scores of active volcanoes, sits on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire where a large proportion of the world’s quakes and volcanic eruptions are recorded.
On September 27 2014, Japan suffered its deadliest eruption in almost 90 years when Mount Ontake burst unexpectedly to life.
An estimated 63 people were killed. – AFP