Abe Orders Military Rescue of Hikers Trapped by Volcano

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ordered Japan’s military to mount a rescue operation as an eruption of the nation’s second-highest volcano injured dozens of weekend hikers, including at least one fatally, and left hundreds descending through darkness or sheltering in mountain huts.

At least one woman died in the eruption, public broadcaster NHK reported tonight, citing local fire officials. More than 70 people were receiving medical treatment, 32 of them seriously injured and 10 of those unresponsive, as people coated with volcanic ash continued to arrive near the base of 3,067-meter (10,100-foot) Mt. Ontake in central Japan. About 230 had made it to the bottom of the volcanic peak, where eruptions of ash, rocks and smoke continued, as of 8:30 p.m. local time, NHK said.