Rescue workers have returned to a Japanese volcano on Monday to recover bodies after an eruption over the weekend killed dozens of people.<br /><br />Over a thousand soldiers, police and firemen managed to bring down more than 20 bodies by helicopter before the effort was suspended because of toxic gases.<br /><br />At least 45 climbers are believed to be dead after Mount Ontake erupted without warning while hundreds of hikers including children were admiring the autumn scenery.<br /><br />Survivors have told stories of seeing people buried alive by ash and battered by a cascade of rocks.<br /><br />The volcano continued to erupt on Monday and more eruptions are forecast.<br /><br />Mount Ontake is a popular beauty spot around 200 kilometres west of Tokyo. There was no warning of the eruption which is the first fatal one in modern times at Mount Ontake.<br /><br />Toshitsugu Fujii from the Japan Meteorological Agency said: “We couldn’t predict the eruption as Mount Ontake has only erupted a few times in the past and we don’t have enough scientific data.”<br /><br />Japanese authorities watch more than 100 live volcanoes in the country for activity, but say the unpredictability of the steam explosion and Mount Ontake show how enar-impossible it is to out guess mother nature.<br /><br />There are now concerns about Mount Fuji, just 100 kilometres from Tokyo.
