A clean-up operation has begun in Japan after an eruption at a volcano covered an entire city with ash.

Footage shows Mount Sakurajima spewing the dark plume 5,000m into the air. It is the 500th eruption this year.

Residents of the nearby Kagoshima city used masks and umbrellas to protect themselves, as ash fell from the sky onto the streets below.

Daniela Ritorto reports.