Volcano erupts on Japanese island sees evacuation ordered, flights diverted

A volcano on a small, Japanese island erupted on Friday morning, sending plumes of smoke billowing thousands of metres into the sky and forcing residents to evacuate.Mount Shindake erupted at 9:59 on Friday morning on Kuchinoerabu Island, a small island in southern Japan’s Kagoshima prefecture.After the volcano erupted and spewed a tower of black clouds into the sky, the Japan Meteorology Agency raised the volcano alert level from three to five. The clouds prompted Japanese authorities to evacuate the approximately 140 residents of the island by ferry.A pyroclastic flow of heated gas and rocks flowed down the side of Mt. Shindake following the eruption and made its way down to the ocean.No injuries were reported despite the suddenness of the eruption.