The eruption occurred at the Otake crater on the Suwanose island of Kagoshima Prefecture at 22:05 on March 30 (local time). Local authorities said that there has been no report of damage caused by volcanic eruptions.
On March 31, the Japan Meteorological Agency raised the volcanic activity warning level to level 3 on a 5-level warning scale, whereby residents and tourists must not get close to the crater.
After the eruption on the evening of March 30, volcano Otake again erupted at 2:57 am on March 31, knocking rock and soil hundreds of meters away from the crater. The Japan Meteorological Agency has warned people about the possibility of large pieces of rock being thrown into the air within a radius of about 2 km from the crater.
By the end of 2020, the Otake volcano increased its activity, the Japan Meteorological Agency raised the warning level to level 3 on January 28, 2020. The volcanic alert was later lowered to level 2 on January 14, 2021 due to the absence of any major changes in volcanic activity data.
Suwanose Island is a volcanic island located with a small population, located about 230 km south of Kagoshima city, capital of Kagoshima Prefecture to the south – southwest of Japan.