Heavy snow continues to fall on Sea of Japan coast; public warned of traffic disruptions
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Pedestrians walking under falling snow in Tokyo's Koto district on Jan 2. Some areas of Japan have already seen twice as much snow as it usually gets at this time of the year.
PHOTO: AFP
TOKYO - Heavy snow continued to fall in areas along the Sea of Japan coast
The Japan Meteorological Agency reported heavy snow in the cities of Katsuyama and Ono in Fukui prefecture, warning of slippery roads and possible avalanches as a cold air mass and strong winter pressure pattern persist through Jan 25.
Northern to western regions facing the Sea of Japan, including Kanazawa in Ishikawa prefecture, a popular tourist destination, and Niigata prefecture, home to ski resorts, have seen heavy snowfall since earlier this week.
Highway traffic may be disrupted between Nagoya and Osaka, with multiple road sections between the central and western Japanese prefectures likely to be closed overnight as a precautionary measure, according to Central Nippon Expressway and West Nippon Expressway.
Some areas of Japan have already seen twice as much snow as it usually gets at this time of the year.
Up to 80cm of snow is forecast to fall in the Hokuriku region and 70cm in Kanto-Koshinetsu around Tokyo, as well as in Tokai, centreing on Nagoya, in the 24 hours until 6pm on Jan 25.
In Niigata, a 76-year-old man died after he allegedly fell off the roof of his house where he was removing snow, according to local police.
He was found lying on the ground at around 11.40am, about 10 minutes after telling his son, who was also on the roof, that he was climbing down.
The man was taken conscious to hospital, but later died.
In nearby Toyama prefecture, an out-of-service tram derailed at around 10.10am. KYODO NEWS
