Yayoi {extensive life} Island is located 682 km northeast of Hawaiishima,{breath of life island} (home to MAWs), part of the Hyakunoshima {hundred isles} Archipelago that ranges slightly north and south of the equator in the eastern hemisphere. The island sits on a hot spot just north of the equator. It is 8765 km northwest of the northern tip of Tairiku, {continent} within the Teikoku Miyama {imperial seamounts}, and is part of the Honowa {ring of fire}, one of three overlapping volcanic rings in the northern hemisphere of the planet. The tropical island is 10567 sq. km, 163 km across at its widest, with 1284 km of coastline, it has a total full time residential population of about seventeen thousand. It is mostly untouched rainforest except for Lartani {central valley}, a large valley near the center of the island north of the Keliki Sanmyaku {ridgeline mountains} where the agriculture on the island is based; producing organic varieties of sugar cane, pineapple, papaya, mango, guava, litchi, rice, coconut, avocado, breadfruit, citrus, passion fruit, taro, yam, tamarind, common garden vegetables, herbs, spices, tea, cocoa, coffee, ornamental and edible flowers, macadamia nuts, ginger, flax, silkworms, hemp, ramie, free range poultry, cattle, and boar, also horses and dogs. The town of Himawari {sunflower} converges the roads and rail lines leading into the valley from the coastline. There are two resort towns, Greenpoint is located on the northeast coast, a surfers paradise named for the green waves on the point break. Destin is located on the west coast of the island on Tranquil Bay, it is popular stop for cruise ships, and offers diverse recreation; that includes ukiyo pleasure district, ryokan, onsen, yacht clubs, shopping, resort hotels, spas, polo grounds, theme parks, amusements and attractions on the streets of fun, casinos, dance clubs, race tracks, social clubs, casual to fine dining, live theaters, movie theaters, live houses, a range of outdoor activities and sports on sea and land from beaches to trails, playgrounds, and parks; enjoyed both by tourists and locals. On the southeast coast is the town of Okaji. It is both a small commercial sea port on Mikadzuki Bei {crescent bay}, and light industrial center that includes textiles, kaolin clay mining, pottery, tourism related manufacturing, microalgae farms, black lava sea salt mines, sea salt farms, aquaculture, marine biotech, solar technology, marine technology, industrial ceramics, agricultural processing, and agricultural manufacturing. It is home to the commercial regional airport Ladybird Aerodrome, it serves many islands in the archipelago. Keliki Sanmyaku runs diagonally across the island and features five volcanoes. Snow topped Mt Zal in the northeast, a post shield volcano, is 4247 masl and over 32000 cubic kilometers, so massive that the ocean crust is depressed beneath it by six kilometers, measured from its base on the ocean floor it rises over ten thousand meters, and is the highest point in the archipelago. Mt Zal is about a million years old and last erupted approximately six thousand years ago, it is considered a dormant volcano. Greenpoint is about sixty four kilometers west, as the crow flies. South of Mt Zal is Qhurupuna {golden mountain}, a dormant shield volcano that has not erupted for over 100,000 years, whose slopes are covered in yellow, gold, and orange varieties of flowers, (passiflora, dewdrops, persian shield, zinnia, evening primrose, moonflowers, gold blade lilies, angels trumpet, titian night rose, blanket flowers, and coreopsis) moths, and butterflies, (red lace wing, imperial, peacock, and golden birdwing) known locally as Goldie. Southwest of Qhurupuna is Mt Okmok, the 9.3 kilometer wide circular caldera truncates the top of a large shield volcano (1073 masl) and currently Tulip Lake fills 150 of the 475 meter deep crater, the volcano is still active but has not erupted in hundreds of years. Southeast of Mt Okmok is the active shield volcano Kurosuna Yama {black sand mountain} composed mostly of basalt, with an elevation of 1676 masl and a prominence of 790 m, currently the large irregularly shaped summit caldera measures 4 by 3.2 km with walls up to 120 meters high. Its eruptive history has been long and extensive, the oldest exposed lava dates to more than 3000 years old. Most eruptions flow from fissures down its southeastern flank into the Hilina Rift Valley and then on into Byron Bay, known for its exotic black sand beaches that can only be accessed by sea. The town of Okaji is seventy seven kilometers southwest of Kurosuna Yama, as the crow flies. Domuyo Kazan {to tremble and grumble} on the southwest coast of the island is more than 365,000 years old and has been continuously erupting since April 3033, starting with an event that generated a 300 meter high lava fountain, that still pulses; a popular tourist attraction, though recently it is not as high; and has added 93 ha of new land to the island in the succeeding years. The shield volcano is 1732 masl and its caldera is 15 km wide, its slopes are covered in fumaroles, hot springs, and geysers. The town of Destin is one hundred and six kilometers north, as the crow flies. ISLAND VOLCANO ERUPTION CAUSES CHAOS 100 Striking Pictures Show Horror of Eruption 3068 April 13, evening edition Three days ago on the island of Yayoi at four am local time, the volcano Kurosuna Yama erupted explosively, with an energy equivalent to a magnitude 5.3 earthquake, throwing lava and ash over 9000 meters into the air. There rising hot air pushed by the wind caused rotations that spun quickly, forming whirlwinds. They are still visible at the summit where the surface is cracking and there is inward slumping of the rim and walls of the crater in response to the ongoing subsidence. Today, lava is still coming forth from a six kilometer wide flow following previous patterns east into the ocean at Byron Bay, releasing multiple laze plumes and lava bombs; where molten lava spilling into the cool ocean is then catapulted into the air as much as a thousand meters, scattering red hot explosive projectiles, some as large as basketballs, along with clouds of acid, toxic gas, and fine glass. The volcano has created a new strip of land now more than a kilometer long off the Byron Bay coast. The volcano is sending out twenty six times the amount of lava per second than it did during the 3016 eruption. The NPO Sea Patrol has ordered all sea traffic to stand off at least 500 meters from the coastline, NGS and SAR vessels are of course exempt. Vog, containing acidic aerosols that damages the environment and impairs lung function, caused by gas plumes from the erupting volcano, has enveloped the island. All air traffic, except for NGS and SAR vehicles have been grounded. The eruption was accompanied by several earthquakes, the strongest registering at 5.8 magnitude, followed by several smaller quakes occurring at the rate of 15 to 25 per hour, that are expected to continue leading up to another collapse/explosion event at the summit within the next forty five hours. It is suspected that these quakes in conjunction with recent heavy rains caused the opening of a new fissure which began spurting lava vigorously in fountains pulsing to heights of 55 meters which then spew into a three kilometer wide flow that has already covered 15 square kilometers at speeds of 13 kph southwest of the summit, causing several methane explosions as it moves through areas with heavy vegetation. This flow is now threatening Kosai {iris}, an outlying suburban community near the northeastern edge of the town of Okaji with more than 600 residents. There are no tsunami warnings at this time. Mayor Hiram Fong of Okaji has declared an emergency and ordered the mandatory evacuation of Kosai, and activated the coastal emergency plan this morning. He has requested assistance with the evacuation and disaster relief aid from the MP for the Hawera Chiku {burnt place district} Eduard Maynard, the Minister of Public Safety Lidia Lovegoode, and the Minister of Emergency Management Janek Stilinski. Okaji residents have been strongly advised to evacuate to the sea, at least two kilometers offshore, if personal vessels are not available, please see the attached list of passenger and cargo vessels that have volunteered to assist due to the crisis and register for transport [#okajievacuatebysea]. You may also obtain transport at the harbormaster’s office and be assigned a berth on a vessel as they become available. Please refer to [#evacuationchecklist] and ensure you have all the necessary items with you. Berths will be available for pets, they MUST be in carriers, please ensure all pet tags match carrier tags. Gordon Nakayama the local spokesperson for StarTrain announced this morning they have volunteered several of their high speed and touring trains exclusively for emergency evacuation transport of Okaji residents to Destin. As of this morning, all freight transport still on the move to Okaji has been redirected to Himawari where possible. All roads within twenty five kilometers of Okaji have been closed except for emergency vehicle use and southbound evacuation traffic ONLY. All incoming rail traffic was notified to be turned back, or held at the station last evening and closed till further notice after reports came in of deformed rail lines caused by the earthquakes. AP News Reporter Jeremiah Osuna Photos credit Nejiro Geological Survey Photos credit Sebastian Corvus, Li Fan, Rebel Secord