Japan’s Sakurajima volcano erupts, coating town in ash (VIDEO)

A Japanese volcano erupted Sunday, covering a nearby city in ash and causing traffic delays.

Nobody in the city of Kagoshima was hurt or injured by the ash falling from Sakurajima volcano, about six miles away.

It was the 500th time this highly active, 3,664-foot volcano has erupted this year but the smoke plume was the highest since 2006.

The eruption even saw a small amount of lava ominously run down the side of the volcano.

While the ash caused traffic problems and public transport delays, most of it was cleaned off by Monday morning.

Ash of the kind spewed by Sakurajima can cause respiratory and eye problems, in addition to contributing to lung diseases.

Japan sits within one of the most seismically active regions in the world, with earthquakes and eruptions being commonplace.

Kagoshima is about 600 miles southwest of Tokyo.