A fire occurred in a tunnel on the JR Hakodate Line in Asakikawa, Hokkaido, on Sunday. Police and firefighters said the fire was extinguished after 7 1/2 hours, but as of Monday morning, services still had not resumed.
According to JR, at around 4 a.m. on Sunday, the driver of an out-of-service train returning to Asahikawa noticed an overhead wire on fire as the train passed through the Arashiyama tunnel, Fuji TV reported.
The conductor sounded the alarm and he and the driver got off the trains safely. JR Hokkaido believe that the sparks generated from train rails ignited urethane which is used for prevention of water leakages.
Resumption of operations between Asahikawa and Fukagawa have not been scheduled yet. Currently, JR Hokkaido is offering bus services instead.
© Japan Today
3 Comments
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Mar044
Fire in a tunnel is the worsted possibility for transportation.
diuneahma
Hokkaido is now technically cut off by land
iLoveNippon
What on earth do you mean?