NHK



 

Rescuers are searching for a man who's believed to have fallen while livestreaming his climb up Mount Fuji.

Police in Shizuoka and Yamanashi prefectures, which Mount Fuji straddles, received numerous reports from viewers that the man fell down the slope around 2:30 p.m. on Monday.

The police sent a helicopter to the area seen in the YouTube video. They confirmed marks that appear to have been made by a person slipping above the mountain's seventh station.

A ten-member team of mountain rescuers began searching the area on Tuesday morning.

Officials say they have not confirmed the identity of the person streaming the video.

The video shows the area covered with snow. The climber is heard saying he's rushing for the peak and has trouble working his smartphone because his fingers are freezing.

A video on a different website shows a man climbing what appears to be Mount Fuji panting, saying the snow is dangerously slippery, and walking along a fence near the summit. When the fence is no longer visible, he says he's slipping.

The video then shows the man sliding feet-first and his hiking gear and smartphone hurtling away before it ends.

A Twitter account believed to be that of the man shows photos of a bus ticket from Tokyo to Mount Fuji and the interior of a bus, taken on Monday morning.

Mount Fuji has been closed since September. Local police say it is especially dangerous when covered with snow. They're calling on people not to climb the mountain when it is closed.