500 in Tokyo hurt as ice covers sidewalks, streets

Robert Besser
11 Jan 2022, 14:31 GMT+10

Japanese authorities have reported that more than 500 people in the capital Tokyo were treated at hospitals on January 6 and 7 after falling due to ice and snow on streets and sidewalks
Police also said that 77 traffic accidents resulting in injuries had occurred in Tokyo due to the snow which, at one point, left up to 100 vehicles stranded on the Tokyo Gate Bridge
The Rainbow Bridge, a major tourist attraction, along with some 14 routes on the Metropolitan Expressway, were temporarily closed due to the weather

TOKYO, Japan: Japanese authorities have reported that more than 500 people in the capital Tokyo, which saw its first heavy snowfall in four years, were treated at hospitals on January 6 and 7 after falling due to ice and snow on streets and sidewalks.

Central Tokyo received 10 centimeters of snow, which disrupted traffic.

According to the Tokyo Fire Department, 525 people ages 1 year old to 100 were taken to hospitals, including a woman in her 60s who suffered serious injuries.

Police also said that 77 traffic accidents resulting in injuries had occurred in Tokyo due to the snow which, at one point, left up to 100 vehicles stranded on the Tokyo Gate Bridge.

The Rainbow Bridge, a major tourist attraction, along with some 14 routes on the Metropolitan Expressway, were temporarily closed due to the weather.

Additionally, All Nippon Airways canceled nine flights at Tokyo's Haneda airport, and several railway lines were suspended or delayed.

Many commuters had to cautiously walk on icy roads at JR Shimbashi Station.

In Saitama Prefecture just outside Tokyo, 140 people were injured, with four suffering what authorities called severe injuries, including a 72-year-old woman who fell from her bicycle and broke her leg.

In Ibaraki Prefecture, 548 traffic accidents caused by snow and ice on the roads left 64 people injured as of January 7, and some 244 people were injured in Chiba Prefecture, one severely, authorities said.

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