680 cars still stranded in heavy snow in central Japan

We got caught in heavy snow and pulled over to rest with the heat running. I recall we cracked a window just in case. But really there is nothing you can do in such a situation.

My family got caught in a situation like this once, when the predicted blizzard hit hours earlier than expected. My mom got out every little while to check the tail pipe and clear snow. We had emergency supplies in the back of the car - blankets, gloves, nuts and chocolate, etc. and very fortunately had a CB radio in the car. Some nearby farmers eventually heard our calls and came in a convoy. Pulled us out with a big tractor. We were then storm-stayed on the farm for 5 more days. As a little kid, it was a great adventure. For my parents, it had been a very hairy night, that turned out lucky.

This article is out of date missing a lot of information. At least one person has died as of last night.

Fukui city doesn't get a lot of snow I was told (uncle in law lives there), so this is quite unexpected for them. And like Tokyo they don't have snow ploughs, because there's generally no need for them.

Apparently the snow is so heavy that it is piled high between each car or truck. No way that a snow plough/plow can get in between each of those vehicles. As soon as they clear a gap, the snow comes on hard again... Definitely still an on-going situation.

There's no "simply" about it, this is pretty major

https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2018/02/e075e5c51ab1-1-killed-over-1500-cars-stranded-in-snow-in-japan.html

a line of some 1,500 vehicles stretched for about 10 kilometers on Route 8. The Ground Self-Defense Force mobilized more than 700 personnel to help remove snow and provide water and food to drivers.

Since your tank will run dry after about three hours, assuming full to start with, your heating will cut out in due course, so always carry extra blankets, gloves, hats etc when driving in winter here. And if your tailpipe gets clogged with snow, you could be breathing carbon monoxide as the poor fellow in the article above. A simple car journey must have turned into a freezing nightmare for the people in those 1,500 vehicles.

If you live in japan and a have car, always keep the tank full, and have water, emergency food, first aid kit, extra clothes and jumper cables. There are many dangers here.

clamenza, thanks for that, a kind of relief!

A search of the net shows that a car can run all weekend or more simply idling. (I was imagining driving at a steady 70 mph which really sucks the stuff up. ) So most of these people who spent the night in their cars will have been OK and warm.

This happen to me once. There was a forecast of no blizzard, then driving home it hit and I had to turn back to the town I came from. Then I just kept living the same day over and over and over again.

A quick look at JMA, the Japanese weather people, shows that they do get quite a bit of snow in Fukui City every year. Their average annual max snow depth is 55cm, so they will have snow ploughs and huge snowblowers and graders (road scrapers) and gritters and all the rest.

It sounds like they've been pounded with an overpowering amount of snow this year, especially in this past week. They've got nearly 1.5m now, more than a good few of the ski towns (!) Unlike them, Fukui City is only 10m above sea level. Most super snowy parts of Japan are further inland and get their snow from damp air rising up the mountains and dumping everything it has.

I just looked at Google Maps of Fukui Prefecture and it seems like very beautiful country. Please stay safe for those of you living there.

Im wondering if the Army could help in this situation.

More typically with a snowplow nose or another small car added to the front: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AX2TUYvTVgQ

Not a single snow plow to be seen...?

I'm curious why the trains would be affected as their weight generally plows through snow (and is fun to watch). Maybe due to switching problems?

Not saying it was warm outside, but certainly he could have opened a window to alleviate the CO2 issue.

Since your tank will run dry after about three hours,

If your car is near empty, yeah. If not, there is something seriously wrong with your engine.

If you live in japan and a have car, always keep the tank full, and have water, emergency food, first aid kit, extra clothes and jumper cables. There are many dangers here.

For the average motorist, the only dangers you have to worry about is a senile senior going the wrong way on a 1 way street and the like.

Unless you live in the alps, that list is anal retentive. Common sense in waiting out the storm at home or at work should have been enough.

the “stranded” were on a main road and I’m sure spent no more than an hour in their cars before simply walking to a nearby house or business.