Victims of 2014 Eruption Mourned at Summit of Mount Ontake

September 27, 2018

Otaki, Nagano Pref.- Relatives of 58 people killed and five others unaccounted for in an eruption of Mount Ontake in central Japan in 2014 offered prayers at the summit of the volcano on Wednesday, the eve of the fourth anniversary of the disaster.

The entry ban for a trekking route leading to the summit was partially lifted the same day, allowing the relatives, totaling about 30, to climb to the top of the 3,067-meter mountain straddling Nagano and Gifu prefectures for the first time since the eruption on Sept. 27, 2014.

After reaching the mountaintop in some three hours in total using a ropeway and on foot, they offered silent prayers at 11:52 a.m. (3:52 a.m. GMT), the exact time when the eruption occurred four years ago.

Also, a ceremony was held to unveil a new monument set up by a committee comprising officials of local municipalities including the town of Kiso and the village of Otaki, both in Nagano.

Inscribed on the monument are a message reading "Rest in Peace" and lessons from the eruption, such as a need to continue monitoring the active volcano and provide necessary information.

Natsuko Nomura, 57, the mother of Ryota, who went missing in the eruption, brought messages from the son's friends from his high school days. Ryota was 19 when the eruption occurred.

"I want him to come back," Nomura, from the city of Kariya, Aichi Prefecture, central Japan, said. "I can't sort out my feelings. It seems as if it happened only yesterday."

Hiromi Noguchi, 60, whose husband, Izumi, 59, died in the disaster, shed tears at the mountaintop.

"I recalled the morning when I saw him off to the mountain," she said, explaining the reason for her tears. "If I knew there was no tomorrow for him, I should've made more luxurious lunch boxes and come with him."

"I want come here next year again, if possible," Noguchi, from the Nagano town of Ikeda, said. "I have to remain in good shape."

A memorial service organized by relevant municipalities will be held in Otaki on Thursday. Jiji Press