JAPAN is drawing up legislation that will require operators of hotels and other tourist facilities close to the nation’s volcanoes to have emergency evacuation plans in place.
Revisions to the existing Active Volcanoes Countermeasures Law will force such companies to devise emergency measures, while tourism departments of local governments will be charged with monitoring visitors’ locations.
The government’s action has been prompted by the eruption of Mount Ontake last October, which killed over 60 hikers, and the ongoing volcanic activity in the Owakudani hot spring district.
Roads and paths into the Owakudani district, normally busy with day-trippers from Tokyo, have been shut.
“We are informing all our clients and the media about the situation, but it is important to point out that only a very small part of the area is affected,” Motohisa Tachikawa, a JTB spokesperson, told TTG Asia e-Daily.
“There has been a very small number of cancellations so far, but we are a little concerned if this unsure situation continues into the summer holiday season.”
He added that hotels and tourist attractions in nearby towns like Gora and Tonosawa are operating normally.
HIS Japan is also reporting a limited impact on business with only “a few” cancellations, confirmed spokesman Yasuhiko Hoshi. “It’s a relatively small area that has been affected and not one of the most popular spots for tourists. Overseas visitors rarely go to that area anyway, so that segment of the business has hardly been affected.”
The company is nevertheless monitoring the situation carefully, he added.
