JAPAN TIMES



 

Heavy snowfall continued to affect transportation across northern Japan and the Sea of Japan coast on Monday, leaving thousands of travelers stranded.

The latest storm, driven by successive cold air masses, dumped record amounts of snow in the city of Sapporo, with snow depths reaching 111 centimeters in the Hokkaido capital by Sunday afternoon — exceeding 1 meter for the first time in four years.

Hokkaido Railway Co. said train services in the Sapporo area were expected to resume on Monday afternoon once tracks have been cleared of snow.

At New Chitose Airport, about 7,000 passengers were stranded overnight after rail links to Sapporo were halted, according to public broadcaster NHK.

Road conditions across the region remain hazardous. The Do-O Expressway is closed between Sapporo junction and Sapporo Minami interchange in the Chitose area, and the entire section of the Sasson Expressway between Sapporo and Otaru is closed.

Many residential streets in Sapporo are yet to be fully cleared of snow, narrowing lanes and forcing pedestrians into roads.

Snowfall totals along the Sea of Japan coast are significantly above average, with accumulation reaching 4.7 meters in parts of Aomori Prefecture and more than a meter in the cities of Niigata, Yamagata and Sapporo as of Monday noon.

The storm has already proved deadly. In Niigata Prefecture, a 56-year-old man died Sunday after apparently falling from the roof of his three-story home while clearing snow, police said. He was working alone when he fell, with snow depth in the area exceeding 2.4 meters.

Across Fukui Prefecture, 15 people have suffered injuries from snow removal accidents over the past several days, while Ishikawa Prefecture reported 32 vehicle crashes caused by slippery roads, which injured nine people, according to NHK.

Officials are urging residents to avoid working alone when tackling the snow and to use safety gear when clearing roofs.

On Sunday evening, eight people in the city of Hirakawa, Aomori Prefecture, were reported missing after going into the mountains to ride snowmobiles. They were all found safe and uninjured by Monday morning after a team of 30 policemen and firefighters was dispatched on a search and rescue mission.

While snowfall in northern parts of the country is expected to ease by Monday afternoon as the cold air shifts east, snow and rain is forecast to return on Tuesday, raising the risk of further disruptions.