A Rare Heavy Snowfall Hits Tokyo

AFP-JIJI, KYODO; The Japan Times; 8 Feb 2014

Heavy snow and severe weather struck Tokyo and other areas across Japan on Saturday, leaving three dead and more than 500 injured, reports said.

More than 740 flights were grounded as the weather agency issued a severe storm warning for the capital, while more than 40,000 households lost power.

A child holds a ball of snow near a half buried motorcycle near Tokyo.
At least 27 cm accumulated, the highest snowfall in the capital since 1969.

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued the first heavy snowfall warning for central Tokyo in 13 years. Snow accumulation reached 27 cm, the heaviest snow in the Japanese capital since January 1969, the agency said.

"Tokyo only averages 4.3 inches of snow each year. The last time they picked up an eight-inch-plus snowstorm was Feb. 12, 1994," said weather.com meteorologist Nick Wiltgen.

Public broadcaster NHK said at least 494 people were injured in snow-related accidents only in eastern Japan, including 17 serious injuries.

It also said two female passengers, aged 88 and 90, died on Saturday in a car accident on their way to a nursing home in Ishikawa, central Japan. Police suspect one of the cars skidded on the icy road and caused the head-on collision.

A man was also killed in Nagano as a train smashed into his car at a railroad crossing, the broadcaster said, adding that 3,200 other accidents occurred across the nation caused by vehicles skidding in the icy conditions.

The agency issued a heavy snow warning for Tokyo, the first such warning for the capital in 13 years, calling on residents not to go out unless necessary. The agency also warned of strong winds and high waves in eastern Japan.

Japanese airline companies have cancelled at least 740 flights on Saturday due to heavy snow, NHK said.

Television footage showed hundreds of passengers queuing for reimbursement or a change of flights at Tokyo’s Haneda airport with departure boards indicating the cancellation of many flights.

Employees were hurriedly removing snow from the pavement in front of their shops and restaurants in Tokyo’s bustling Ginza district.

Some 43,800 households lost power in large areas of central and eastern Japan because of the heavy snow, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported.

In Tokyo, several universities delayed the starting times of their entrance examinations for the new academic year starting in April.

A man walks on snow-covered tree-lined road in Yokohama, Japan.

 Tokyo Skytree, the world’s tallest broadcasting tower at 634 meters, was closed from 11 a.m. due to strong winds, its operator said.