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Police and mountain rescue personnel were kept busy during the nine-day year-end and New Year holiday period after heavy snow in mountainous areas killed two people and left three missing. Another 26 people were rescued after being stranded or getting lost in mountains due to heavy snow.
NHK reported that the two deaths were a 31-year-old Tochigi man whose body was found on a slope near the fifth station on Mt Fuji on Sunday after he went missing on Jan 1; and a 64-year-old Yamanashi woman who disappeared while climbing a mountain by herself in the northern alps in Nagano Prefecture on Jan 1. Her body was retrieved by a helicopter on Jan 2.
Police said another three climbers remain missing -- a 31-year-old Yamanashi man on Mt Fuji, who was last heard from on Dec 28; a 40-year-old Osaka woman who went missing in the southern alps in Yamanashi Prefecture on Dec 31; and a 47-year-old Saitama man who failed to return Sunday from Mt Nantai in Tochigi Prefecture.
The 26 people rescued include the three snowboarders who got lost when they went looking for an off-piste slope at Kagura Ski Resort in Yuzawa, Niigata Prefecture, on Friday. They were rescued by a helicopter on Sunday.
Police and mountain rescue personnel said most of the incidents requiring rescue were caused by climbers failing to accurately judge weather conditions, which can change within minutes, neglecting to take adequate equipment and lacking the physical strength necessary to complete climbs.
Police are urging climbers to be aware of their limitations and level of experience when making plans in an attempt to reduce the number of mountain rescue incidents.
They also cautioned skiers and snowboarders to be careful when heading to off-piste and back-country terrain.
© Japan Today
6 Comments
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avigator
Nothing like staying home or just going to an onset during the holidays. None of that mountain climbing.
justbcuzisay
I would think that it would be best advised not to hike alone, as server all seemed to be. Adds at least a higher chance of calling for help if only one is injured or falls. Take care anyone who likes mountain activities. I'll stick to the kotatsu
Seawolf
I climbed Asamayama twice this season, but both times turned around well below the top, first time for inadequate equipment (the wind was blowing my ears off), second time for lack of time (the lower part through the forest had deep snow, no trail broken in) and change of weather. The most important thing is to tell yourself that there will always be another chance, don't pressure yourself, always be ready to drop out and turn around. The windchill above treeline can freeze you to death very fast, esp when you are sweating. Having said that, winter still is a beautiful time to hike, esp because you don't need a bear bell, it is totally quiet, and the snow and wind together turn every tree and stone into a sculpture.
Serrano
Why do some people insist on going to mountainous areas when it's snowing?
Nessie
Because the mountains are beautiful in the winter and you can go places you can't in summer. The problem is when people overestimate their ability and underestimate the weather.
This is the mark of a good hiker.
nandakandamanda
See the video of the three snowboarders who were rescued. After winching up the two women, one of the rescue crew members goes down and gives the guy a tongue-lashing. "Why did you go off-piste? We are risking our lives for you!"
http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/videonews/jnn?a=20150105-00000032-jnn-soci