Izu-Oshima

November 15, 1986 Eruption of Izu-Oshima

November 15, 1986 · VEI 3 · 1 death

Izu-Oshima in Japan erupted on November 15, 1986 with a Volcanic Explosivity Index of 3. The eruption killed 1 person.

Where it erupted

Izu-Oshima, Japan, with its other significant eruptions.

Open the live map with volcanic ash advisories and webcams

The eruption

Date
November 15, 1986
Volcano
Izu-Oshima, stratovolcano
Country
Japan
Volcanic Explosivity Index
3, moderate to large (eruption column 3 to 15 km)
Killed by
Indirect deaths (disease, starvation, exposure)
Location
34.724° N, 139.394° E

The toll

Deaths
1

Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.

What the record says

NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.

A 74-year-old man died of a heart attack while being evacuated by ship from the island, on eruption's first day.

Other significant eruptions of Izu-Oshima

More

Every eruption in 1986The 1900sIzu-OshimaEarthquakes near Izu-OshimaThis day in weather history

Sources

Volcanoes and significant eruptions from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. Volcano numbers are the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program’s. NCEI event 1332.