OSAKA- Bullet train operations were suspended on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen Lines for up to five hours until early Thursday morning due to a power failure caused by overhead wire disconnection in western Japan.

According to Central Japan Railway Co., or JR Tokai, and West Japan Railway Co. , or JR West, the Shinkansen operators, trains began running again at around 12:55 a.m. (3:55 p.m. Wednesday GMT).

The power outage, which occurred at around 7:55 p.m. Wednesday, affected some 51,000 users of the Tokaido Shinkansen Line, linking Tokyo Station and Shin-Osaka Station, and 37,900 users of the Sanyo Shinkansen Line, running between Shin-Osaka Station and Hakata Station in Fukuoka. It caused a maximum delay of six hours.

According to JR Tokai, a power-feeding wire was found disconnected at around 8:30 a.m. at a point on the outbound line in the city of Takatsuki, Osaka Prefecture, located between Kyoto Station and Shin-Osaka Station.

A short circuit was created when the disconnected wire touched a Shinkansen car, the company told a press conference Thursday, adding it is investigating why the wire was severed.

The power loss disabled Shinkansen trains in the section. As a result, operations between Kyoto and Hakata were also halted. (Jiji Press)