50 Vehicles Pile Up in Heavy Snowfall in Japan, One Killed

Tokyo: A major accident occurred in Japan after 50 vehicles collided amid heavy snowfall. The incident took place on Friday night on the Kan-Etsu Expressway. Two trucks initially collided near the city of Minakami, about 160 kilometers from Tokyo. Vehicles that followed lost braking control on the snow-covered road, leading to a massive pile-up.

More than fifty vehicles collided while approaching from both directions. Following the collisions, a fire broke out, worsening the scale of the accident. It took about seven hours to completely extinguish the fire. A 77-year-old woman was killed in the accident, and 26 people were injured, five of whom are in critical condition.

Authorities had issued a warning about heavy snowfall on Friday. However, due to New Year celebrations, traffic on the roads was unusually heavy. Following the accident, the expressway was temporarily closed.