Japan on Sunday marked 12 years since the eruption of Mount Ontake, with bereaved families and the head of the Japan Meteorological Agency attending a memorial ceremony, according to NHKニュース.
The anniversary fell on September 27, the date the volcano erupted in 2014. NHKニュース reports that the JMA director-general joined the memorial, returning to the ceremony for the first time in 11 years, a detail also carried by jiji.com.
Families of those who died used the occasion to stress the need for continued disaster preparedness, a message reported by Yahoo!ニュース. The theme of passing on the lessons of the disaster to future generations was described as an ongoing challenge.
Coverage of the anniversary also focused on how climbing habits have shifted since the eruption. nagoyatv.com reported that hikers are being urged not to rely solely on smartphone apps and to carry paper maps, as part of its disaster preparedness feature.
The group representing bereaved families, known as "Yamabiko no Kai," called for safe climbing on active volcanoes, according to 信濃毎日新聞デジタル.
Mount Ontake is one of Japan's active volcanoes, and the annual ceremony serves as a focal point for public education on volcanic risk.
What to watch next: whether authorities and climbing groups translate these annual appeals into concrete safety measures for hikers on active volcanoes.
