Japan volcano death toll hits 48 as new bodies found
3 Oct 2014 5:00 AM IST
The figure makes the eruption of Mount Ontake, which was packed with hikers when it burst angrily to life on Saturday lunchtime, the worst volcanic disaster in Japan for almost 90 years.
Up until Sunday 36 bodies had been found, but many of these remained on the ruptured mountain as toxic gas and the risk of further eruptions forced emergency workers to suspend operations.
The grim news of more deaths came after media reports earlier suggested as many as 20 people remained unaccounted for, with an area of the volcano still spewing steam and gas.
Some of the around 1,000 troops, police and firefighters combing the volcano succeeded in bringing
down 14 more of the bodies that were discovered on Sunday, with another 10 still there. An official at Nagano prefecture`s crisis management office said helicopters had been used to ferry the dead from the mountain, whose pockmarked lunarscape bears witness to the huge volume of ask and rocks flung from the volcano.‘We believe there are more people still missing, but we don`t know how many they are,’ he added.
Broadcaster NHK said earlier in the day rescuers had seen more bodies that they had not yet been able to access.
Hiking is a hugely popular pastime in Japan, with mountain trails promoted by tourism officials who ask walkers to sign in when they begin their trek and sign out again when they finish.But a local tourism association told the Asahi Shimbun that usually only 10 to 20 percent of hikers register before entering the mountains in high season.The report said 327 hikers had registered their presence on Mount Ontake at the time of the eruption.
Up until Sunday 36 bodies had been found, but many of these remained on the ruptured mountain as toxic gas and the risk of further eruptions forced emergency workers to suspend operations.
The grim news of more deaths came after media reports earlier suggested as many as 20 people remained unaccounted for, with an area of the volcano still spewing steam and gas.
Some of the around 1,000 troops, police and firefighters combing the volcano succeeded in bringing
down 14 more of the bodies that were discovered on Sunday, with another 10 still there. An official at Nagano prefecture`s crisis management office said helicopters had been used to ferry the dead from the mountain, whose pockmarked lunarscape bears witness to the huge volume of ask and rocks flung from the volcano.‘We believe there are more people still missing, but we don`t know how many they are,’ he added.
Broadcaster NHK said earlier in the day rescuers had seen more bodies that they had not yet been able to access.
Hiking is a hugely popular pastime in Japan, with mountain trails promoted by tourism officials who ask walkers to sign in when they begin their trek and sign out again when they finish.But a local tourism association told the Asahi Shimbun that usually only 10 to 20 percent of hikers register before entering the mountains in high season.The report said 327 hikers had registered their presence on Mount Ontake at the time of the eruption.
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