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Husband, wife die after falling into pit on Ishikawa beach

94 Comments

A married couple died Saturday night after falling into a pit dug on a beach in Kahoku, Ishikawa Prefecture, rescue workers said. Police identified the victims as Hiroki Demura and his wife Risa, both 23.

According to a report on NHK, Risa and five friends dug a 2.5-meter-deep hole on Friday afternoon as a birthday surprise for her husband. When they went back to the beach on Saturday night with their friends, the Demuras fell in and their upper bodies were covered by sand.

Their friends alerted police and rescue workers pulled the couple out about 45 minutes later. They were taken to hospital where they were pronounced dead due to suffocation, the NHK report said.

The hole was 2.4 meters wide and covered by a blue sheet at the time of the accident, police said.

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What?? More info please!!!

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

darwin award of the year

0 ( +7 / -7 )

What an absolutely shocking story. You couldnt have made this stuff up.

It sounds like they were going to play a "surprise" prank on the husband and it all went horribly wrong.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

ahoyan. what a nice joke of them to digg a hole. pffff

-2 ( +2 / -3 )

So instead of a seaside bonfire and a cake, her loving spouse surrounded by friends all singing happy birthday, the wife decided to dig a pit, cover it up, and then bring her husband out to "accidentally" fall into it. She ended up misjudging the location of the pit and fell in with him.

Imagine the work it must have taken to dig a pit 2.4 meters wide and 2.5 meters deep! All to play a practical joke as a birthday "surprise".

Someone's been watching too much T.V., but apparently not closely enough. Those hidden pits you see on Tunnels and other wacky variety programs are invariably filled with foam rubber cubes and are otherwise designed not to be fatal.

A tragedy, surely, but still...

3 ( +6 / -3 )

well, as the old saying goes, "whosoever diggeth a pit shall fall in it"...

0 ( +4 / -4 )

This is a scene right out of the movie "24 Eyes." The most needless pair of deaths imaginable. I saw this on ANN News and was appalled.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Digging a 2.5 meters/8.2 feet hole in loose sand and getting anywhere near it defies common sense.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Risa and five friends dug a 2.5-meter-deep hole on Friday afternoon as a birthday surprise for her husband.

Some psychologist could write a thesis about that sentence alone. It is art, I'm almost tempted to frame it and put it one my wall. Anyway, poor couple, hope they didn't have kids.

2 ( +5 / -3 )

So this imbecile of a woman and her friends dig a hole 2.4m wide by 2.5m deep in a public beach on Friday and leave in until Saturday night before returning. Wow what collective brainpower there. Very sad that the husband died, but lm glad the wife learnt her lesson and luckily some poor little kids or other innocent people didnt suffer the same fate.

Some people just have no brains at all.

-2 ( +6 / -7 )

was waiting for this to pop up on JT, the TV channels have been having a field day with mock ups and in depth analysis of it. They put huge mounds of sand on the side of the blue sheet to hold it taunt, all that sand on the side was fell in on top of them. Risa was obviously a fan of the stoopid variety shows, where this gag is popular.

Pre-teens, or early teens I would expect this, but adults? obviously not the smartest bunch of cookies the lot of them.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Surprise fall into a deep pit is regular prank on almost all tasteless Japanese owarai shows. I guess Risa and her friends saw this stuff on TV and decided it is OK to imitate it.

1 ( +3 / -1 )

Great birthday surprise from a brain dead wife, dumb as rocks Risa and her hollow headed friends killed her husband.

Let this be a lesson don't marry a brain dead girl she'll be the death of you.

I bet the friends feel like chumps now.

1 ( +8 / -7 )

So sad.

-1 ( +3 / -4 )

but lm glad the wife learnt her lesson

Really? What a terrible thing to say. Absolutely gutless and insensitive. She didnt learn any lesson - she died horribly.

13 ( +16 / -2 )

Someone needs to be arrested, this is a prank gone bad.

-2 ( +3 / -5 )

Sounds like they made a very large cave-in booby trap. People don't realize the danger of large amounts loose soil and sand. Where did they get the idea? Nobody was on hand with shovels "just in case"?

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Darwin award anyone?

-2 ( +5 / -7 )

Too bad Capt. Hindsight and his merry band were posting at JT today, rather than visiting this beach on Saturday night.

Oh, yes. I am sure that if you "Darwin award" screamers had been there, you would have seen the danger the instant the idea sprang up, thanks to your latent engineering knowledge, and declared that people would die...for sure.

If I am going to decry anything, its the same sense of schadenfreude that led to these deaths and some of these comments both.

-3 ( +5 / -7 )

I don't understand what birthday surprise the wife had in mind. Was she just going to take her husband for a walk on the beach at night and then say, "Happy birthday darling. Here's your present. A hole in the beach."

6 ( +9 / -2 )

Japan lost a future political couple, really what a stupid way to go.

1 ( +4 / -3 )

Wow - some real nasty comments on here. I say Rest in Peace to the young couple, at least they went together. Yes, it was a dangerous thing to do - but everyone on here has done dangerous, silly stuff in the past and gotten away with it. Sasoriza has a good point - I wouldnt be surprised either if she got the idea from one of the countless moronic japanese TV shows that have such pranks. Possibly a stunt inspired by that self-proclaimed "genius" clown Beat Takeshi?

6 ( +9 / -3 )

DentShop

Really? What a terrible thing to say. Absolutely gutless and insensitive. She didnt learn any lesson - she died horribly.

Yes she did die horribly l agree. Who dug the hole? She did. Who left the massive deathtrap on a public beach over night and the next day? She did. What would you and others be saying if a family wandered along and fell in and died. You would be screaming for her blood. She put every person who used that beach at risk by her stupidity and at the end of the day as insensitive as it sounds she died, better her than some innocent kid or family.

7 ( +11 / -4 )

The Darwin Awards is such stupid humour anyway.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Yeah, don't do this at home. They probably got the idea from them "variety" shows. Although those talento all look surprised when dropping down a pre-dug hole, they are all in on it.

-3 ( +0 / -3 )

If there's any sympathy to be had it should be for the husband who had nothing to do with the digging of this pit other than having an idiot of a wife and a set of moronic friends to boot. How anyone has any sympathy for the diggers who at their age SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER that their bright idea could potentially seriously injure (broken limb, neck, etc.) or be fatal for the husband. And don't let me get started on the fact that they dug this pit and left it unattended overnight...

9 ( +10 / -1 )

Would like to see a picture of the wife.

-4 ( +4 / -8 )

Great birthday surprise from a brain dead wife, dumb as rocks Risa and her hollow headed friends killed her husband. Let this be a lesson don't marry a brain dead girl she'll be the death of you.I bet the friends feel like chumps now.

LOL

-4 ( +5 / -8 )

what kind of a birthday present is a pit in the beach?

7 ( +9 / -2 )

All too often we see on Japanese TV, 'talent' (for want of a better word), playing these kinds of pranks, whereby they have a false floor and wait for someone to fall into it. This seems to be what these party-goers were hoping to do. A sad loss of two young lives.

-3 ( +2 / -5 )

@Maitake - glad you find someone else's pathetic comment funny.

2 ( +7 / -5 )

ExportExpert was pretty much spot on with his comments, what sort of brain dead moron digs a whole in a beach as a birthday present

-3 ( +5 / -8 )

The headline made it sound like an accident, but then in the article it transpires that we are really talking about a candidate couple for the darwin award. A 2.5 m hole in loose sand..... an invitation to jump in? No thanks. No sympathy from me in this case.

-5 ( +2 / -7 )

What an idiotic prank! I hope those responsible are charged with man slaughter, at least. I can just them all hiding behind a car giggling and carrying on like 12 year olds waiting for them to fall in.

-6 ( +2 / -8 )

what were the friends doing for 45 min until the rescue came?

6 ( +8 / -1 )

Bookowls

You think digging a hole on a public beach like this is clever?

It was a stupid dangerous silly prank and any one who does such a thing is endangering everyone who used that beach, dumb dumb people doing dumb dumb things that other dumb dumb people dont think are dumb dumb dumb.

Just so DUMB in every way!!

1 ( +5 / -4 )

Wife wins the Darwin Award, for sure. So, the husband's "birthday surprise" was a big pit in the sand? SURPRISE! You dug a grave for you and your hubby! Congrats!

"They were taken to hospital where they were pronounced dead due to suffocation, the NHK report said."

Once again we have the 'paramedics' in Japan having to abide by 1948 laws and unable to pronounce dead at the scene. They were trapped for 45 MINUTES! There's no way they weren't dead already when they reached the hospital to be called. Not that they paramedics could have done anything but pronounce them dead anyway, but still they are so far behind here it's baffling.

2 ( +6 / -4 )

@smith

I'm sure this isn't a Japanese thing. Back in England, (it's been a while but I think my memory serves me correctly), I remember radio and TV news reports of accidents ending "The victims were taken to hospital and pronounced dead." it's just they way things are done; doctors are the only people with the authority to sign a death certificate, so they are the ones who make the decision. I don't see the problem....

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Smithinjapan, In what country are paramedics able to sign off on a death certificate and legally declare someone dead? Japan is not unusual in this regard.

-1 ( +3 / -4 )

@lucabrasi & j4p4nFTW

I think he does not like Japan and appears to enjoy bashing it.

The wife and her friends made a tragic mistake. Laughing at them shows bad taste.

I'm really glad I moved back home in the sense that I can see my own country's flaws and do an honest comparison. People here are no smarter. Ever hear of show called "Jackass"? And all the people who died trying to mimic it?

If Japanese do it, suddenly Japan is the "stupidest" country in the world. Or so the J-bashers would have you believe.

0 ( +4 / -4 )

CarcharodonAug. 29, 2011 - 09:22AM JST

They put huge mounds of sand on the side of the blue sheet to hold it taunt, all that sand on the side was fell in on top of them.

Grateful for the exta information. I am sure before this, people assumed the hole just collapsed. But, of course, they won't admit here how smart they aren't. In absence of the knowledge, I was imaging that they must have all been gathered at one side, and that caused a cave in. But if so, they could surely have dug the couple out themselves. So it was not making a lot of sense to me, and that was part of my reason for my first post. If I saw people doing this, my first warning would have been about the sheer drop. But hey, if its soft sand at the bottom, that is not a big deal. I have jumped much further into sawdust.

Also, I would not have predicted that the sand holding the tarp down would cause such a major collapse, well, not without seeing it at least. But people are oh such geniuses in hindsight. I am sure I would have told them it was not funny and dangerous (for the fall), but doubt I would have foreseen that they would die as a result of being buried with 5 adults there ready to dig them out.

And so, while I think it was dumb, I don't think it was all that atypically dumb for human beings. The dumbest part of it all, IMHO, is the very unfunny immaturity of the whole practical joke of pain or terror concept all over the TV in this country (and some others too. I have some winner from Brazil where they scare the life out of some people with fake killers in hockey masks like its a movie, and I could totally see someone pulling a fatal move in such circumstances).

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Also, I am sure alcohol played a major part in this disaster.

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

I was surprised at strange news. We need to not to forget the risk.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

ReformedBasher: "I think he does not like Japan and appears to enjoy bashing it."

Yes, well, you oft do impose your opinions and thoughts on others before taking a minute to think and then post -- it's called misdirection. You then couple that with failing to talk about the thread at hand, for the most part.

"Ever hear of show called "Jackass"? And all the people who died trying to mimic it?"

They most certainly earn Darwin Awards as well, agreed. But what were these pit-digging people mimicking, pres tel?

lubracasi: Since you asked, no, Japanese paramedics are not as up-to-date as their counterparts. Only three years ago were they given permission to inject epinephrine without having a doctor on the phone give them permission, and only 51 doctors out of 1500 in Tokyo are trained to do so... and that's just for starters. They are bound by archaic laws and can do little more than hold the patient's hand as they are ferried from hospital to hospital trying to find one that is open so a doctor can pronounce an obviously dead person dead. But here, take a look... might surprise you. British paramedics and 'emergency medical technicians' are required to be able to make quick and critical decisions (and are held responsible for mistakes), can perform various techniques to save lives (anaesthetising, tracheal procedures, etc.), and more, and are often required to take further development courses, as my paramedic friend in England tells me. He said the main problem there is that the qualifications are becoming less strict and emergency service companies themselves can now decide on the training they wish to give employees, making room for discrepancy. ReformedBasher (apt name, BTW), will call pointing out facts 'bashing', but hey... he does like to deflect, as I said:

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/shukan-st/english_news/editorial/2006/ed20060414.htm

Anyway, back to the hole in the ground -- there's no question that this was absolutely stupid... I really can't see how it was supposed to be a 'good idea' or great birthday surprise. I truly do not know what Risa and her friends were thinking.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

j4p4nftw: "Smithinjapan, In what country are paramedics able to sign off on a death certificate and legally declare someone dead? Japan is not unusual in this regard."

Nowhere did I say anything about a death certificate, did I? To my knowledge, in that regard, ONLY an MD or similar professional can sign off on it. Likewise it's usually only a coroner who can legally state cause of death (except extreme cases for both). However, pronouncing someone dead is another story. While in many nations an MD, registered nurse, or the like, there are exceptions depending on the state (in the US, for example), and the case. There are dozens of articles that point this out, but I'll direct you to only one for now:

"In some jurisdictions, a police officer or a paramedic may be allowed to sign a death certificate under specific circumstances. This is usually when the cause of death seems obvious and no foul play is suspected, such as in extreme old age.... Accident deaths where there is no chance of survival (decapitations, for instance) may be certified by police or paramedics, but autopsies are still commonly performed if there is any chance that alcohol or drugs played a role in the accident."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_certificate

1 ( +4 / -3 )

Mirai: "Sorry moderator, but this story is so horribly written. It lacks detail and there are spelling mistakes."

Not to speak on behalf of the editors, but while the spelling mistakes can be fixed easily enough, stories such as these tend to always be vague. I'm sure there's a Japanese news story on the incident that provides much more detail.

Moderator: There is not much extra info on this story on any news website.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I think the pranksters forgot the part in the variety shows which shows about 50cm worth of foam and cushioning at the bottom of the pit to absorb the fall..... and more importantly the crew were on standby to pull them out...

@smith

I find it more disturbing than baffling. What it suggests to me is that the paramedics - if you can call them that here, don't even have the right to pronounce it if the victim has expired. So if a paramedic is technically not authorized to determine if a victim is deceased, what is their level of expertise in being able to actively revive or stabilize a patient? I think in Japan the only "first" aid you're going to get is once you arrive at the hospital. Sad but true, so stay safe everyone.

I also find disturbing that that I have often overtaken ambulances (with sirens blazing) whilst on my bicycle.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

chinpira: "So if a paramedic is technically not authorized to determine if a victim is deceased, what is their level of expertise in being able to actively revive or stabilize a patient?"

I believe when the patient is obviously dead, they can refuse to give treatment, but given that the treatment they CAN give (either by law or lack of qualifications, or both) is extremely minimal that's not saying much.

"I also find disturbing that that I have often overtaken ambulances (with sirens blazing) whilst on my bicycle."

In the cases of narrow streets, which are many, that can't be helped much. I do find ambulances here absurdly loud compared to other countries, but maybe that's just me.

"I think the pranksters forgot the part in the variety shows which shows about 50cm worth of foam and cushioning at the bottom of the pit to absorb the fall..... and more importantly the crew were on standby to pull them out..."

Were they really copying one of those silly 'punishment' shows? Yeah, this was absolutely ridiculous, and as such quite sad. Did the friends even try to help pull them out? It sounds like they just called an ambulance and stood there waiting -- but the information is quite limited and I would hope to god they at least tried.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

It's so bizarre I can barely believe it. But the old hole in the ground gag is a favourite on Japanese TV.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Bookowls

You think digging a hole on a public beach like this is clever?

It was a stupid dangerous silly prank and any one who does such a thing is endangering everyone who used that beach, dumb dumb people doing dumb dumb things that other dumb dumb people dont think are dumb dumb dumb.

Just so DUMB in every way!!

Actually I agree, and never said that I thought it was ''clever''. Had you bothered to read my first comment, you would have known this! Obviously some people out there think that it's perfectly fine to slander the deceased, regardless of whether what she and her friends did was idiotic.

You forget which country we live in - there is NO sense of danger here, NONE! So I'm sure they thought it would just be a harmless prank. Certainly not clever, but I won't lower myself to name calling and feeling justified to do so as you have done!

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

I also find it highly disturbing that 4 people gave me a thumbs down on my original comment because I felt it was a sad loss of life.

0 ( +4 / -4 )

Was she just going to take her husband for a walk on the beach at night and then say, "Happy birthday darling. Here's your present. A hole in the beach."

Maybe he was wishing for a hole in one.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

They really over did this prank (lethal booby-trap). If you want to surprise someone, a foot deep hole is all you need to shock someone.... but no lets dig a hole so deep that they will definitely injury someone....

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Maybe a more sinister set-up so that the husband and wife could die together? With the friends in on it? Not impossible....... shadier things have happened. If she knew where the hole was.......how come she fell in also?

3 ( +3 / -0 )

what were the friends doing for 45 min until the rescue came?

ehh? Risa? Daijoubu? eh? nani?

7 ( +8 / -1 )

Today when I saw this story I couldn't help but laugh.

This story is funny, even my wife laughed and smirked alittle. Both of them are 23 years old. PROBABLY BLONDE or ORANGE HAIR"

Did anybody bring rope ?

That was the WORST surprise birthday party I have ever heard. I'm not surprised if this story goes international.

About the comments for this story everybody has a right to express how they feel.

This story is much worse than the Nigra Falls umbrella girl.

-2 ( +5 / -7 )

Readers, there is nothing funny about this story. Plesse do not post tasteless remarks.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

This is such a stupid, stupid way to die, I hope they arrest these so called idiot friends, now 2 people, YOUNG people are dead, what fools! RIP?? Muri kanaa??

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

One wonders how much alcohol was involved. I have honestly never met anyone this stupid who was sober.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

Moderator...yes actually it is a sad story, but stupid funny too. Really stupid.Kill your husband and yourself as a prank, that is stupid glad none others were killed by accident.

-1 ( +3 / -4 )

Besides being a birthday present I wonder what was the purpose of the hole to begin with? I can just imagine my husband presenting me with such a gift, I wouldnt know what to do with it and probabley assume that after being married for 48 years I had unfortunately tipped him over the edge

2 ( +2 / -0 )

I also find it highly disturbing that 4 people gave me a thumbs down on my original comment because I felt it was a sad loss of life.

People prefer to keep mentioning DARWIN AWARDS instead of recognizing it's a sad loss of life.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

their upper bodies were covered by sand.

Nobody got the idea to pull their lower bodies (apparently not covered by sand)? Were they just standing there waiting for the couple to suffocate??

I agree with some of the posters above that digging that kind of a hole and leaving it unattended could have had serious consequences (including death apparently) for anyone walking on that beach. The friends who helped dig that hole should be made responsible/accountable for that death trap.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Why is the hole 2.4 meters wide? It must have been dug to trap two people. Why did the friends wait 45 minutes to call an ambulance? It took another hour to pull the couple out after cops arrived.. According to witnesses, no one saw the wife digging. If the wife knew, why is it that both fell head in first? The hole was dug on Saturday (27th) afternoon, the same day the couple fell in. It took the guys about 4 to 5 hours to dig. Sure glad no stranger fell in accidentally.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

BurakuminDesAUG. 29, 2011 - 10:57AM JST Wow - some real nasty comments on here. I say Rest in Peace to the young couple, at least they went together. Yes, it was a dangerous thing to do - but everyone on here has done dangerous, silly stuff in the past and gotten away with it. Sasoriza has a good point - I wouldnt be surprised either if she got the idea from one of the countless moronic japanese TV shows that have such pranks. Possibly a stunt inspired by that self-proclaimed "genius" clown Beat Takeshi?

Yes I agree with you 100%! I don't understand why so many nasty comments. It was a bad prank, it was a stupid idea but we all do stupid things in our lives and usually get away with those stuff.

One should not act as though he or she is perfect or brilliant in every form. Nobody is perfect. May this young couple rest in eternal peace.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Wow! I can't believe the amount of idiotic comments being allowed to be posted here calling the wife an idiot! Do you guys have no respect? Whether she was right or wrong is neither here nor there, you just don't call someone who has died as a tragic result of a mistake, stupid. Seems many of you care for nothing but your own opinions!

-4 ( +2 / -6 )

What person thinks of digging such a gigantic hole as a joke and walks back to it with her husband, just to fall in at night, without anyone around as witnesses? Smells terribly fishy to me!

3 ( +3 / -0 )

She must have been a fangirl of Team Rocket! Nobody else could contrive such a dumb plan and have go awry.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

This kind of story would be better reported with a photo - of the place - ,were this tragedy happened.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Well, you know the saying.' it's all jokes until someone gets hurt' in this case killed. What happened is just terrible. This is no joking matter, it's man-slaughter. It was a joke, although a very dangerous one, all the way up until, the two newly weds were in mortal danger. Imagine them in that hole, you think they were laughing? You think the foolish young bride wasn't agonizing, as the sand poured in on them. And do you think the groom was laughing it up? imagine his utter surprise, very rapidly followed by his mortal-primal fear. And their friends, obviously oblivious to the danger at first, freaking out on utter shock, and awe, and not even trying to dig them out. Once friends, but but now accomplices to man-slaughter. Yea, haha, very funny, you killed your friends. And imagine the parents, I'm not even gonna go there. Lets just stop laughing at death, is this world so far gone that we think it's something funny? Let's not. Let's mourn a useless, un necessary death. Peace.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

This is one of the reasons I fear 'Summer People' each year. People are more and more accustomed to dealing with Reality: As Seen on TV or in video games, but the basic issues of survival outside of a city are beyond them.

That said, I can see someone watching a gag about being trapped in a hole as being something they could pull off, not understanding how dangerous it was, and how heavy even a shallow layer of sand is, but after digging a hole that wide and that deep, you'd think they'd have appreciated the weight and danger involved.

Nobody got the idea to pull their lower bodies (apparently not covered by sand)? Were they just standing there waiting for the couple to suffocate??

Depending on the moisture content, sand can weight from 1600-2000 kg/cu.m. This might be like trying to pull a small tree out of the earth with your bare hands.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

This is such a stupid, stupid way to die, I hope they arrest these so called idiot friends

On what charge? The last time I checked, "Gross Stupidity" wasn't a crime.

Odds are, when the husband's weight pulled the tarp in, the wife was standing on a covered piece of the tarp and went in with him but not before dislodging part of the hole wall. Their friends probably then rushed to the hole and dislodged more of the wall onto the struggling victims. Only THEN did they realize how unstable the walls were and anyone entering the hole would likely get buried as well. They watched in horror as the flailing of the victim's legs was reduced to just involuntary twitching. Their nightmares are going to be literal hell for the foreseeable future.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

why would you dig such a deep hole as a prank? Just dig a small hole (1/2, 3/4 a meter deep) just get the point across even if your weird sense of humor is having your hubby fall into a sandy hole, yet reducing the death risk to zero, the point probably was to trap the hubby for fun, not kill him......

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Japan's collective i.q. just went up. Personally, I was sorely disappointed when I learned my wife loved fireworks. I refuse to take part and she knows she's responsible for transporting our kids to the emergency room when the inevitable skin burns, or worse, occur.

the Demuras fell in and their upper bodies were covered by sand.

So their lower bodies (legs) were protruding, but the negligent friends were too weak to pull them out. Death was foreseeable by a reasonable adult; this is manslaughter on the part of the surviving "friends". A 1-2 year stay in the local pen should be enough. Am I the first to actually realize this?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

This is a horrible story. My heart goes out to the family and friends of the deceased.

I was really shocked to read of the size of this hole dug in something as unstable as sand because it created a situation where a tragedy was just waiting to happen. It is hard to accept that no one among the group of adults appeared to be aware of the potential danger involved. But the deaths of these two people is just too cruel a lesson.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Aw poor Hiroki. He found out the hard way that his wife was as dumb as a box of rocks.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Murder_suicide??????????????????

0 ( +0 / -0 )

My wife, is a native Japanese, she knows here own people better than any of us here. She does not believe this was just some kind of innocent prank, hahaha, oops, we can not get these 2 out of a whole filling up with very heavy sand BS. She thinks maybe these other so called friends may have had some kind of grudge towards either the wife and or the husband too, come up with this so called birthday surprise, wait almost an hour to call the police instead of calling the FIRE DEPARTMENT right away, so I agree with Anna Louise, it smells way way too fishy for me too! I hope their is an on going police investigation and those responsible for these deaths are arrested in a court of law. BTW, I want to hear more from Hawkeye, murder and suicide?? The wife actually wanted to die?? And kill her husband at the same time??

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

@Elbuda: You may have something there. It does sound ridiculous the way it's being reported. Although sometimes pranks do go horribly wrong. We definitely need more info and the friends should be suspects - agreed.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Something like this happens every summer in Japan but usually it's children who dug the hole. Several years ago I found that somebody (children or someone with a body to dispose of?) had dug a deep hole on an isolated wooded slope at the edge of a city park. Telephoned the city parks department and reported it. A few days later, our ever vigilant public officials had sprung into action. They had the hole surrounded by a string of yellow police tape.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

If I were digging a hole in the sand as a prank, I wouldn't expend the energy to dig such a big, deep hole. Yes, it does seem strange.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

This story is insane. I get kind of sick to my stomach when I read about things like this, because it really reminds you there are a million ways to go, and almost all of them are unexpected and horrifying.

@Elbuda, that is a really wacky theory, buddy. Why bother with the elaborate setup? If the wife wanted to commit a murder/suicide, why bother making it look like an accident? It's not like the police are going to come around asking questions because, you know, she's dead. Have a little respect.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

The wife is 23-year-old. She and her friends are old enough to understand how dangerous falling into a 2.5-meter-deep hole is. Poor husband. If he fell into the hole alone, would the wife be accused of some kind of sin?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Where are the beach boys? Anyone who ever dug a hole in the sand, noticed it to be in a reverse cone-like shape. So if you fall into 2.5m cone, you slide down, and with it, the sand atop is slowly starting to run down. Enough time for the others to free them. But I can just imagine their useless behavior once sand started to fall in. Probably they were all intoxicated. Never mind how stupid that surprise was promising to turn out, Japanese are just useless when it comes to helping others with quick reasonable response. Have seen many mishaps myself during my 14 years in Japan. I'm a beach boy :)

0 ( +0 / -0 )

This story is just unbelieveable. If it wasn't Japan, I'd believe it's a bad joke to publish something like this.

I wonder how someone can have such a crazy, dangerous and stupid idea without being heavily intoxicated by alcohol or drugs. With that amount of intoxication, it is an astonishing feat to dig such a deep hole. And even then - it was a group of friends. At least one of the should have been sane enough to see the danger of their great plan.

It is sad that young people die through stupidity of others (or maybe even their own). It's a death which is avoidable, which is so unnecessary - I've never ever heard anything like this before. There are many young people who die because they misjudge their own capabilities...

But this? It's so crazy... I'm really at a loss of words.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

@bookowls: Thanks, it's nice to know that you are glad I found humor in ExportExpert's (as you say) "patheic" comment. In fact, you will be glad to know that each time I read that comment I laugh. I appreciate his use of alliteration and his advice. I don't think it's funny that two people died, but his comment highlights just how stupid those people's actions were. Do you think that Risa was smart in digging a death trap?? So, why is it okay for someone to write what Export wrote, but if I laugh at it I am condemned? I don't see how that works. Yoroshiku ne.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Readers, please focus your comments on the story and not at or about each other.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Readers, please focus your comments on the story and not at or about each other.

sir, yes sir!

3 ( +4 / -1 )

People die for doing stupid things or strange mishap.

The moral to the story is - be glad and thankful that your breathing right now.

I've seen this " sand trap " in a BEAT TAKASHI movie. He dug a hole for somebody and the person fell in.

I can't remember the name of the movie but it was funny.

Some people do not have any sense or direction. Hopefully people will learn from this.

Even if the couple did not get killed they could have broken their legs, neck or punctured one of their organs.

The hole was toooooooo deep. After the prank, how are they supposed to get out ? Because nobody had a rope or anything ?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Actually my smiley face is inappropiate. Apologies for my lack of respect.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

For those who don't understand why the friends couldn't pull them out, consider this:

50 lbs of sandbox sand (i.e. JUST screened sand with no moisture) is only about 2 cubic feet of sand. Beach sand is going to be a bit more with the moisture and other debris. When the people fell they probably had their arms out and when the sand fell on top of them the arms were pinned under 100+ lbs of sand each. Those arms essentially were acting as anchors. Additionally, the rescuers would have had to stand on the sand that was pinning the arms down, adding THEIR weight to the "anchors". So it would have required the ability to lift about 350 lbs while standing on an unstable surface in order to just yank them free.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Thats a very big pit. Very very dangerous....

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

A stupid act indeed, but I don't see the need to slander dead people just because we don't know them personally. If the couple were simply injured, then I wouldn't see anything wrong with the couple receiving endless ridicule. Some of these comments are tasteless and ignorant.

RIP to 2 very young people with so much to look forward to, and despite some of the cowardly comments on here, could have been very kind and generous people with no bad intentions in life.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Where are the beach boys?

God only knows.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

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