Hokkaido's Mt. Tokachi volcanic alert level raised to 3 | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News

Japanese weather authorities have raised the volcanic alert level for Mount Tokachi in the country's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido to 3 on a scale up to 5, restricting entry to the mountain.

The Sapporo Regional Headquarters of the Japan Meteorological Agency says seismographs installed on the mountain have detected volcanic earthquakes with large amplitudes since August 17. It says the largest tremor in the recent series was recorded at around 8:20 a.m. on Saturday.

This brought the total number of volcanic earthquakes with large amplitudes since August to five, meeting the criteria for raising the alert.

The level was changed to 3 at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday.

Officials are urging people to be on alert for large volcanic rocks in areas within around 3 kilometers of the 62-2 crater.

They are also warning that volcanic ash and small rocks could be blown far by winds and fall over areas on the downwind side.

Volcanic activity has increased at Mount Tokachi this year, including a rise in volcanic gas emissions. Officials raised the alert level to 2 in June. A minor eruption occurred in July.

An official of the Meteorological Agency speaking at a news conference called on people to check information from the agency and municipalities and stay away from dangerous areas.

He said he believes volcanic tremors with large amplitudes have occurred as magmatic materials accumulated underground. He added that no major phenomenon has occurred since the alert level was raised.