Japan’s heavy snow leaves passengers stranded overnight on bullet train

Swathes of western Japan and Sea of Japan coastal areas continued to see snowfall on Monday due to a strong winter pressure pattern, prompting the weather agency to warn against avalanches and further traffic disruption.

About 110 passengers on a Sanyo Shinkansen bullet train bound for Shin-Osaka Station stayed overnight on the train at Okayama Station, western Japan, after the train arrived around 2am on Monday.

The train had been stranded en route for about two hours due to a breakdown of railway equipment, apparently caused by snow.

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In Nichinan, Tottori Prefecture on the Sea of Japan coast, an 88-year-old woman died and her son and his wife suffered leg injuries after a landslide hit their house at around 4.40am on Monday.

The area received around 50-60cm of snow, which is believed to have blocked water channels on a mountain behind the house. When the water eventually burst through, it led to the landslide, according to the prefectural government and local police.

Heavy snow also kept roughly 100 vehicles stalled on Route 378 in the city of Yawatahama, Ehime Prefecture, from Sunday afternoon through evening, with 17 cars of which stayed overnight by the side of the road due to the lack of snow tires.