crime

Drunk driver arrested after head-on collision kills 2 women

14 Comments

Police in Takahagi, Ibaraki Prefecture, said Monday they have arrested a 26-year-old man on suspicion of dangerous driving resulting in death after his vehicle collided head-on with a car, killing its two occupants, a 53-year-old woman and her 79-year-old mother.

According to police, the accident occurred at around 8:25 a.m. Sunday on a curve along a municipal road. Public broadcaster NHK reported that the car driven by Sho Kobayashi, a company employee from Kitaibaraki City, drifted over the center line and slammed into the light car being driven by Sachiko Ohara. Ohara’s mother, Teiko, was in the front passenger seat.

Police said the two women were taken to hospital where they both died of hemorrhagic shock. Kobayashi was taken to a hospital after sustaining minor head injuries. Police said a high level of alcohol, which surpassed the blood-alcohol limit for driving, was detected during a breathalyzer test administered at the hospital.

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14 Comments
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No excuse for the criminal, his irresponsible behavior made two innocent people lose their lives in a horrible way. No punishment is going to bring back the victims to life, but it may help preventing the same crime from happening if he is made an example.

14 ( +16 / -2 )

By 'light car' they mean 'K car'. Those things with the yellow license plates are cheap little tin cans, and whatever the benefits of their fuel economy and ease of parking may be, they offer almost ZERO protection in a smash. So many people have been killed driving them when they would've survived the same crash in a sturdier car.

RIP.

-1 ( +12 / -13 )

Shame on the government for not banning this category of vehicle - along with the front seat as crumple zone Hiace van - years ago.

-1 ( +8 / -9 )

*Kei cars are NOT responsible for more road accident deaths than ordinary cars.*

See, National Center for Biotechnology Information.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24499113/

10 ( +14 / -4 )

Regular car versus kei car: The driver of the former survives in a head-on collision, those of the latter perish. Those tiny death traps are only for those who put money over life.

-2 ( +10 / -12 )

It's true, k cars are death traps. I saw one completely flip over from a 10km collision. They're all many people can afford, however.

-2 ( +10 / -12 )

Regular car versus kei car: The driver of the former survives in a head-on collision, those of the latter perish. Those tiny death traps are only for those who put money over life.

This argument that everyone is spouting makes no sense. The car was not the problem. The drunk driver was the problem. People can drive an SUV and still die from a head on collision. In that case, people should not ride motorcycles on the road because a head on collision is certainly fatal.

No one should be blaming the victim in this situation.

8 ( +15 / -7 )

I wish Japan would give information on blood alcohol levels, especially with the limit being zero. This driver might have just had a very low reading (0.02-03) lingering from drinks the night before. The way Japan reports it gives everybody the impression the driver was bling rotten drink.

I wonder if the women would have survived the crash if they weren’t in a K-car. My ex-wife wanted me to buy one and I refused due a complete lack of safety in them. They have no crumple zones or impact support. If you have an accident in one it just folds up around you. The little three door ones are the worst. The back seats are right at the back of the car. If they get rear-ended whoever is in the back seat (usually kids) are dead.

4 ( +10 / -6 )

Kei cars are NOT responsible for more road accident deaths than ordinary cars.

See, National Center for Biotechnology Information.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24499113/

And the next article under the one you referenced

“Conclusions: Compared to standard vehicle drivers, K-car drivers seem to experience more severe bodily injuries after severe RTAs.”

1 ( +6 / -5 )

Blood loss

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Sad!

0 ( +1 / -1 )

K-cars should be made with same impact specs like the standard cars. Period.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Gallows !!..

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

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