An avalanche yesterday killed seven high-school students and a teacher on a mountain-climbing trip in Japan, with more than 30 people reportedly injured.
More than 100 troops have been deployed in a major rescue effort after the avalanche hit ski slopes in Tochigi Prefecture, with television footage showing rescuers climbing mountains as ambulances stood by.
A group of 52 students and 11 teachers from seven high schools were on a three-day mountaineering outing when disaster struck, authorities said.
Photo: Reuters
A warning had been issued for heavy snow and possible avalanches from Sunday until yesterday in the area north of Tokyo, with the weather agency forecasting snowfall of about 30cm.
At least eight students, mostly from Otawara High School in Tochigi, were found with no vital signs, an official with a prefectural disaster task force said.
In Japan, deaths in such circumstances are not announced officially until doctors can confirm them.
More than 30 people have been injured according to the Kyodo news agency.
“We still don’t know how many teachers are included among the victims,” an official said.
The avalanche struck in the town of Nasu, 120km north of Tokyo on the final day of the excursion, Tochigi authorities said, adding that soldiers were sent to perform rescue operations at the request of the prefecture’s governor.
“This is an annual event and we never had a major accident before,” one of the teachers told Jiji Press. “I am really shocked.”
The ski resort had been closed for the season, according to the operator’s Web site, with the lift stopped and no skiers at the site.
However, some of its facilities were made available for the high-school mountaineering trip organized by physical education authorities.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft