Despite written and verbal warnings, foreign tourists continue to enter the no entry zone around Mt. Aso’s crater. Municipalities around the mountain, which recently erupted, are urging tourists to stay away from the crater, but some foreign visitors are ignoring warnings and heading into dangerous areas at their own risk. Since erupting on Sept. 14, a no entry zone was established that spans anywhere from 2.3 to 4.7 km from the crater due to the risk of flying debris in the event of a future eruption. Since then, more than 10 foreign tourists have been stopped trying to enter the zone, and other people who appear to be non-Japanese have been observed on surveillance cameras inside the zone. The number of visitors to Aso and the surrounding region has skyrocketed in recent years on the back of the weak yen. When stopped, the tourists, most of whom hail from the West or other parts of Asia, try to say they are entering the zone at their own risk, even though “Do Not Enter” signs are posted in English, Chinese and Korean, along with the Japanese. Officials in local tourism promotion sections are vexed by the situation and worried that foreign tourists do not fully understand the danger they are putting themselves in. Source: Nishinippon Shimbun 9/29
