Tokyo ( CNN ) -- A Japanese volcano was erupting for a second day on Thursday , spewing smoke and ash up to 9,800 feet ( 3,000 meters ) into the air , officials said . The smoke from the Mt . Shinmoe volcano , on the boundary between Miyazaki and Kagoshima prefectures , is rising and falling from the volcano crater , said the Kagoshima Meteorological Observatory . Some people in Miyazaki voluntarily evacuated Thursday morning , but all have returned home , and the government has issued no evacuation advice , according to the Miyazaki disaster prevention office . However , the alert level was raised Wednesday to 3 . That prevents people from entering the mountain area . The eruption began Wednesday . Smoke was drifting southeast , the observatory said . Ash was seen in Miyakonojo city in Kagoshima prefecture . The last Mt . Shinmoe eruption was in July . A large-scale eruption such as this one , however , was last observed about 52 years ago , the meteorological observatory said .
Mt . The first thing I noticed was the lack of a lot of people in the park. Some residents evacuated voluntarily , but have returned .