The Daily Manila Shimbun

 

Tokyo hit by heavy snow

January 23, 2018



Tokyo- Tokyo and neighboring prefectures in eastern Japan had heavy snow on Monday, causing wide-scale traffic disruptions that affected evening commuters in the region.

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a heavy snow warning for most of the Kanto-Koshin region, including Tokyo's densely populated 23 wards for the first time in about four years.

Central Tokyo recorded 23 centimeters of snowfall as of 11 p.m. Monday (2 p.m. GMT), the heaviest there since the 27 centimeters marked on Feb. 15, 2014.

Elsewhere in the region, snowfall reached 28 centimeters in Maebashi, Gunma Prefecture, and 27 centimeters in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture.

There were 47 snow-related traffic accidents that caused physical injuries in Tokyo, the Metropolitan Police Department said.

In Tokyo, 67 people were taken to hospital after slipping on snow, including a case in Tachikawa in which a man in his 70s suffered a brain contusion, the local fire department said.

Japan Airlines canceled 124 flights, mainly those using Tokyo International Airport at Haneda, affecting about 15,260 passengers. ANA Holdings Inc.'s All Nippon Airways canceled 102 flights, affecting some 11,400 passengers.

Railway operators, including East Japan Railway Co., or JR East, and Tokyu Corp., reduced train runs. Shinkansen high-speed trains were operated at reduced speeds between Shinagawa and Atami stations on the Tokaido line. Some expressways were closed to traffic. Jiji Press