Still reeling from a series of earthquakes beginning in April, Kumamoto Prefecture is once again experiencing nature's fury, this time in the form of Mount Aso's eruption Saturday.
Besides being on high alert for another volcanic eruption, Kumamoto residents are growing increasingly concerned about the long-term prospects for the prefecture's tourism industry, which has yet to recover to pre-quake levels.
Saturday's eruption occurred around 1:46 a.m. on one of the peaks of the 1,592-meter-high mountain, belching a column of ash 11,000 meters into the air, the Meteorological Agency said.