Image taken from TV

Two children die after car crashes into guardrail in Okayama

Thursday 24th September, 08:17 AM JST

OKAYAMA —

Two children were killed after the car they were traveling in suddenly crashed into a highway guardrail in Kibichuo, Okayama Prefecture, on Wednesday afternoon. According to police, Kumiko Itsushima, 38, of Okayama City, was driving home with her three children after visiting her parents when her car collided with the end of a guardrail.

Her 11-year-old son, Daiki, and 8-year-old daughter, Tomoka, died in the crash. Itsushima sustained minor injuries and her 5-year-old daughter, who was riding in the back seat behind her, was uninjured.

The accident occurred around 2:30 p.m. on a straight stretch of road with no visual obstructions. Police have not yet released any details on how the accident might have happened.

News reports

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Latest 15 of 32 Total Comments Show All

womanforwomen at 01:26 PM JST - 24th September

Yes, I would also think that it could have been some mistake by the mother. With three children and having to make it on time, to get the kids ready for school etc etc maybe she would have temporarily lost her presence of mind. It could happen to anyone. Well in the present time, it would be worthwhile to think that even if you get it is alright. Japanese sense of punctuality is a little too much IMO. It is alright to get late sometimes.

Just yesterday saw a sight from my balcony: young mother with a child in the stroller, another kid walking beside the stroller, her suitcase on the other hand and the baby bag on top of that, was returning from a long trip I guess. Not easy I tell you. And why does it have to be this way? where is the father?
BuddhismTech at 01:29 PM JST - 24th September

The highway guardrail was erected too close to the road. Must be something wrong with the Japanese highway regulations governing installation of guardrails.

I never heard about this kind of accident in America, despite its population is much larger.

JapanToday, please let us know as soon as the police releases the details.
everybest at 01:39 PM JST - 24th September

Maybe not a design "flaw", but there is definitely room for design improvement. It could be as simple as guardrails I have seen in the states where the end flares away from the road.
Midnightpromise at 01:58 PM JST - 24th September

Tragic story. I only wish they could engineer out all the possibilities for bad drivers hitting things on a straight stretch of highway on a clear day.
USNinJapan2 at 03:06 PM JST - 24th September

Here's the story with additional photos from the local media. The second link is a short video news clip. http://www.47news.jp/localnews/okayama/2009/09/post20090923211549.html http://svr.sanyo.oni.co.jp/newss/news/d/2009092319253650

Looks like from the video that accident site had recently been under construction and that the guardrail hadn't been completed or extended far enough. The driver (mother) is naturally at fault for hitting the guardrail in the first place but no guardrail should ever begin/end abruptly without some sort of safety design as this one evidently did. If the guardrail had been designed/completed properly this should have been a non-fatal traffic accident. Truly a shame.
everybest at 03:48 PM JST - 24th September

Here's the story with additional photos from the local media. The second link is a short video news clip. http://www.47news.jp/localnews/okayama/2009/09/post20090923211549.html http://svr.sanyo.oni.co.jp/newss/news/d/2009092319253650

Neither of those links work.
USNinJapan2 at 04:14 PM JST - 24th September

everybest

http://www.47news.jp/localnews/okayama/2009/09/post_20090923211549.html

http://svr.sanyo.oni.co.jp/news_s/news/d/2009092319253650
dolphingirl at 06:17 PM JST - 24th September

How horrible! I can't imagine the grief and guilt the mother must be feeling. And the girl who just lost her brother and sister...very, very sad. Not to mention what the father is going through...I hope this family can recover in time.
taisho999 at 08:32 PM JST - 24th September

Google FNN News.
wanderlust at 09:08 PM JST - 24th September

There were a series of cases a few years ago of cyclists losing their legs from impact with badly-designed guard rails. Many (but not all?) of them were then modified to have soft bumpers.

buddhismtech - the highway guardrail was erected too close to the road. Must be something wrong with the Japanese highway regulations governing installation of guardrails. I never heard about this kind of accident in America, despite its population is much larger.

Where else should it be? If it is away from the road, there is a risk of the car overturning, as the hard edge of the road stops immediately at the guard rail. And Japan does not have much space for pavements and kerbs, despite its lavish use of concrete everywhere.
martyman at 09:56 PM JST - 24th September

RIP to the little boy and girl. The greiving process will take time to heal the emotional scars. You have to wonder in this accident if the use of seat belts may have effected the outcome of the children living or dying.
Mocheake at 10:05 PM JST - 24th September

Terrible tragedy. My condolences to all involved. Hope the mother doesn't blame herself too much. Just speculation but, who knows, she may have swerved to avoid something only to hit the guardrail. Or may have been distracted by something or even the kids. Either way, it's sad.
wanderlust at 11:01 PM JST - 24th September

martyman .... You have to wonder in this accident if the use of seat belts may have effected the outcome of the children living or dying.

When you look at the picture of the car on the Japanese site, and see the guardrail protruding out of the back of the car, with a cloth covering the end of it, you'll realise that the guard rail would have impacted directly on the two kids on the passenger side, causing severe, fatal trauma. They would not have been able to get out of the way. The child behind the driver would have been saved from sudden stopping damage by a safety belt.

Must have been pretty hard for the Fire Services removing them from the car...
Gajin1 at 12:58 AM JST - 26th September

Must be some design fault with the guard rail. The car should not have been able to cacth the end of the rail like that. The end of the rail should end in the ground, thats what I have seen in other countries, in Japan it seems to end in the air, it is just waiting to happen again. Also the material seems flimsy, weak, better car bounches back then detach the rail from all poles like this. Hope wire guard rails will be installed everywhere soon. I Japan it is forbidden to show nudity, but to show a detailed video with blood from children that died in a car accident is possible, if I was a relative and saw this on TV I would be quiet upset...
martyman at 11:40 AM JST - 26th September

Wanderlust, point taken on the impact of the guardrail in relation to the position of the children. Living here in Japan and observing Japanese drivers, children normally are allowed to wander about in the vehicle and usually they take position in the center of the car both in the back seat and front seat to get a better view of the road. One of the children may have been spared if this was the issue. Either way, two items are very evident in this accident: Driver distraction and vehicle speed.

From the pictures, it looks like she drove onto the high shoulder of the road, losing the ability to re-enter the road. Then striking the end cap of the guard rail. Defensive driving and situational awareness could of prevented this accident.