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Driver Confirmed Dead, 25 Hurt in Japan Train Crash
Two trains on the Echizen Honsen line in Fukui Prefecture collided head-on in Matsuokacho on Sunday afternoon, leaving one dead and 25 injured, police said.
Officials suspect the accident was caused by faulty brakes, and police have set up an investigation headquarters at the Matsuoka Police Station to look into a possible case of professional negligence resulting in death and injury.
According to police, at about 1:30 p.m., a train bound for Higashifuruichi failed to stop at Higashifuruichi Station, a terminal of the Eiheiji Line, which is a branch line of the Echizen Honsen line of the Keifuku Electric Railroad Co.
The train accidentally entered the main line of the Eihizen Honsen line and reportedly continued running on that line for about one kilometer at a speed of 20 kph and collided with a train coming from Fukui traveling at a rate of 50-60 kph.
The fronts of the engines of both single-carriage trains were severely damaged in the collision. Tadao Sasaki, the 57-year-old driver of the Higashifuruichi-bound train, died of blunt-force injuries. Yoshitaka Shimada,the 46-year-old driver of the other train, and Hiroyuki Hashimoto, a 39-year-old apprentice driver with him, suffered serious head injuries. Of the 32 passengers aboard both trains, 23 were injured, police added.
Both lines are single-track lines. Of the 45 stations on the main line, only two have systems to automatically stop the trains, and only two of the 30 trains running on the line can use that system. Neither of the trains in the collision was able to use the system, the company said.
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