Snow death toll hits 52; removal efforts hit wall
The Yomiuri Shimbun
Fifty-two people have died and hundreds have been injured in accidents caused by snow in northern and eastern Japan that has already reached more than four meters deep in some areas, according to authorities.
Respite appears to be some way off--heavy snow is likely to keep falling along the Sea of Japan coast through Saturday, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.
According to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency, 52 people had died in snow-related accidents as of Wednesday, 335 had sustained serious injuries and 412 minor injuries.
Thirty-six of the fatalities were people aged 65 or older, and 31 of them died in accidents while removing snow from roofs or roads.
One house has been destroyed by the snow, while two have been badly damaged.
Some parts of Aomori Prefecture have had more than four meters of snow, while Yamagata and Niigata prefectures have had more than three meters and Tottori and Nagano prefectures two meters.
The Aomori prefectural government and 12 municipal governments have set up disaster headquarters to deal with snow-related issues.
In Niigata Prefecture, where heavy snow has blanketed the Joetsu and Chuetsu areas, the Disaster Relief Law has been applied for seven city governments, including the Minami-Uonuma government.
Under the law, the central and prefectural governments cover a municipal government's snow removal expenses. The Niigata prefectural government's headquarters intends to set up an extensive support system that gives priority to local authorities hampered by a shortage of manpower and snow removal machines.
With many residents already exhausted by days of shoveling snow, the prefectural government will encourage its officials to take volunteer leave to assist with snow removal. It also will ask companies to encourage workers to take paid holidays for removing snow.
This year's snowfall is approaching the scale of that in 2006, in which 152 people died.
(Feb. 2, 2012)
