Monday 27th December, 10:53 AM JST
FUKUSHIMA —
A highway in Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan, was reopened Monday morning after being closed for more than 33 hours, with as many as 300 vehicles having been stranded after a large truck lost control and blocked the road amid heavy snowfall.
The gridlock was cleared late Sunday night and all people in the stranded vehicles rescued after offices of the transport ministry carried out snow removal operations with help from the Ground Self-Defense Force.
The Kooriyama highway office of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism says many of the cars trapped in snow on the highway were not equipped with tire chains or snow tires. The office is investigating the causes of the traffic standstill.
While heading toward Niigata Prefecture, the truck driver lost control on a slippery road and the vehicle turned sideways, ending up straddling both lanes of the highway at around 9 p.m. Saturday, the office said, adding the accident resulted in closure of the 12-kilometer road connecting the towns of Nishiaizu and Aizusakashita from 9:35 p.m.
Traffic had been heavy on the highway as a nearby expressway was closed from Saturday morning, also due to heavy snow.
The Kooriyama office began the snow removal operation Saturday night and provided drivers who spent the night in their vehicles with food and gasoline. The snow removal operation was completed around 7 a.m. Monday, enabling the road to be reopened to traffic.
The Kooriyama highway office had asked other highway offices for help removing snow from the road, but with the operation making little progress, the office asked the Ground Self-Defense Force for help at around 4 p.m. Sunday, more than 18 hours after it closed the highway.
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