Terrible news coming out of Japan today.
10,120-foot Mt. Ontake (an active volcano in Japan) erupted on Saturday. The volcano spewed ash and rocks over a vast area. The eruption deposited up to 8 inches of ash on the volcano itself.
31 missing hikers were found dead by rescuers today on Mt. Ontake today. 14 more hikers are still currently missing and the search has been called off for the night.
video of hikers being overtaken by ash on Mt. Ontake yesterday.
Hikers who witnessed the eruption are reporting the event having been highly traumatic.
“The volcanic rocks fell like hailstones.” – eye witness
“We couldn’t breathe so we covered our mouths with towels. We couldn’t open our eyes either.” – eye witness
“The volcanic ash was hurtling so fast I couldn’t run away. I’m worried about people still on the mountain.” – eye witness
About 150 people were able to take refuge in a mountain lodge that likely saved them:
“All of a sudden ash piled up so quickly that we couldn’t even open the door.” – Shuichi Mukai, who worked in a mountain lodge just below the peak, told Reuters.
“We were really packed in here, maybe 150 people. There were some children crying, but most people were calm. We waited there in hard hats until they told us it was safe to come down.” – Shuichi Mukai, told Reuters.
In all, about 250 people were trapped on Mt. Ontake when the volcano erupted. Most were able to get down safely. Ontake is a popular hiking area in Japan and sits only 150 miles from Tokyo, Earths largest city with over 26 million inhabitants. The mountain has many huts, lodges, and well marked trails.
Japan is one of the most seismically active regions of Earth. The last deaths from a volcanic eruption occurred in 1991, when 43 people died after Mt. Unzen erupted in Japan’s southwestern region.
That is incredible and seriously sad. I can’t imagine what my reaction might have been.