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Flights Grounded as Huge Volcano Eruption Spews Ash Miles Into the Sky

It is the volcano’s biggest eruption in more than a year.

More than 30 flights have been cancelled after a trio of volcanic eruptions spewed ash 2.73 miles into the air. Sakurajima, located on the western Japanese island of Kyushu, first vented on Sunday, November 16, at around 1 a.m., according to the Japanese Meteorological Agency. It was its largest in 13 months. Two further eruptions followed, one at 2.30 a.m and another around 7.5 hours later. There have been no reports of damage to buildings or loss of life, and no pyroclastic flow has been observed. Ash from the eruption travelled north east from the volcano, which once formed its own island but is now a peninsula on the southern end of the Japanese archipelago. The volcano is situated to the east of the city of Kagoshima and is one of the most active in the country. Kagoshima Airport, situated to the north of the volcano, has had 30 flights canceled due to ashfall and issues related to the eruption, Reuters reports.