Deutsche Welle, 16 February 2014
Eastern
Japan has been hit by heavy snowfall, killing several people and injuring
hundreds. The winter weather has grounded flights, caused power outages and
disrupted road and rail travel.
Hundreds of
cars were stranded on a hillside road in Japan after being hit by the
snowstorm, Japanese officials said on Sunday. The country's weather agency said
the low pressure system will bring more snow north after passing the Tokyo
region.
As many as
12 people have been killed and hundreds more injured in snow-related accidents
over the weekend, according to the Kyodo news agency. Public broadcaster NHK
said a further 2,150 people were evacuated from their homes over fears the
amount of snow could cause their houses to collapse.
Tokyo saw
as much as 27 centimeters of snow (10.6 inches) and numerous roads were either
closed or congested. Transport officials delivered food and portable toilets to
some areas.
Japan's
largest air carrier, ANA Holdings, said 338 domestic flights and 12
international flights were canceled on Saturday due to the weather.
In
Kawasaki, west of Tokyo, one passenger train crashed into another after the
snow made the brakes ineffective. Nineteen people were injured.
The Toyko
Electric Power Co Inc, which serves Tokyo and the surrounding regions, said as
many as 246,000 homes were without power at some point on Saturday. By Sunday,
some 18,000 homes still had no electricity, the company said.
Temperatures
were as low as 2.6 degrees Celsius (26 degrees Fahrenheit) on Sunday in
Karuizawa, 150 kilometers (93 miles) north-west of Tokyo, where the snowfall
was 90 centimeters deep, the weather agency said. As the weather moves north,
the agency warned of more heavy snow, storms and snowslides, as well as high
waves in eastern and northern Japan.
February
has seen Japan's heaviest snowstorms in 45 years.
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