crime

5 children, woman injured after car plows into them

34 Comments

Five children and one pedestrian were injured after a car plowed into them as they were walking to school in Toyonaka, Osaka, on Wednesday morning.

According to police, the incident occurred at around 7:50 a.m. Sankei reported that five boys, aged between 7 and 12, were hit by a car driven by a 50-year-old woman. Two of the boys sustained serious injuries, including one 7-year-old boy who is in a state of cardio-respiratory arrest. A 40-year-old woman pedestrian also suffered light injuries.

Police said the driver, Emi Nakamura, has been arrested on a charge of reckless driving resulting in injury. She told police she had just dropped her daughter off at the train station and was on her way home.

The incident took place about 500 meters from Shibahara Station.

© Japan Today

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

34 Comments
Login to comment

'including one 7-year-old boy who is in a state of cardio-respiratory arrest'

Please tell it as it really is JT. The poor kid died at the scene. In this case it is highly unlikely that a doctor's official declaration is really necessary . . . . RIP poor 7-year boy, a victim of atrocious driving.

0 ( +4 / -4 )

The media have to wait for a medical professional to officially pronounce death.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

@mark901 other newssites still mention the boy is in critical condition. Cracked skull.

Also atrocious driving? Where in this story do you read her driving was atrocious? According to witnesses it looked like she was not distracted. So until we have more details we can only speculate.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

What type of sentence is a person given with this type of crime? I mean I read it today but never updated again.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

The media have to wait for a medical professional to officially pronounce death.

JT is media? I thought it was a new repeater service.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Where in this story do you read her driving was atrocious?

The article says she was arrested for reckless driving. If running down 5 schoolboys is not atrocious driving, I'd hate to see what is.

3 ( +5 / -2 )

The article says she was arrested for reckless driving. If running down 5 schoolboys is not atrocious driving, I'd hate to see what is.

touche!

3 ( +3 / -0 )

What type of sentence is a person given with this type of crime?

Knowing the backwards and overly sympathetic to the perpetrator and not the victim and victim's family Japanese justice system, she will probably get a two year suspended sentence.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

This is the kind of 'accident' that scares me, with children who walk to school, because no matter how much you teach your children to pay attention, or how often you instil in them to be careful, to watch the road, people like this, who shouldn't be driving, suddenly out of the blue, as life often 'decides' to do, sow total destruction. No reason, no rhyme, just is. A terrible morning for these families, and an all too often occurrence in Japan, inconsiderate idiots driving without due care when they KNOW roads are narrow, usually have no separate sidewalk and JUST DON'T THINK about others. Speeding for the sake of a minute, a changing light, a coffee appointment, rushing to get THEIR train... just damn selfishness.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

What the heck was she doing? Did she fall asleep at the wheel? was she drunk? Did she mistake the pedal for the brake? No details.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

@Smith, on the TBS report Nakamura Emi is saying that ol' chestnut, --dropped her child off-- then mistook accelerator for break.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

By the way, the maximum penalty for reckless driving resulting in death is a prison sentence up to 7 years and up to 1 million JPY in fines. Ridiculous!

0 ( +1 / -1 )

ListenTheTruth: Thanks for filling me in -- no time to watch the TV news. I'm not surprised she's using that excuse, and if it's the truth she must have REALLY mistaken the accelerator for the brake and slammed it to the floor if she hit the kids (and woman) that hard.

Mirai: "By the way, the maximum penalty for reckless driving resulting in death is a prison sentence up to 7 years and up to 1 million JPY in fines. Ridiculous!"

Isn't it, though? I mean if it was HONESTLY a brake/accelerator mistake even then it deserves more, but a 'reckless driving' charge resulting in death should be FAR more. Maybe she'll also be charged separately for each individual she hit. In any case, a whole lot of lives ruined out of sheer stupidity. Don't drive if you don't know the pedals.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

HOLD UP, PEOPLE. I have been driving here for 25 years and have only gotten a ticket once in that whole time. But there have been a few times where I had my head where it should not have been and almost had an accident. I was lucky. She and the people she hit, were not. I am sure that if you people have been driving for a number of years, that you have gotten lucky here and there as well. So, let's not crucify this woman. She did not do it on purpose. It was an accident. This woman is going to have live with this rest of her life. She can never, ever escape it. Let's not jump all over this woman. I'm sure the courts will and she will go to jail. Most likely she does not drive like that on a regular basis. (I am assuming, of course)

Now, on to Japan. I feel sometimes that in Japan someone always has to go to jail if someone is hit and dies. Even if the person suddenly walks out into the street without looking. It is not fair at all. Japan needs to stop punishing people who have hit others because they could not stop in time. Now, this is not the case I am sure with this incident. I just wanted to say that, because many people's lives have been ruined because the pedestrian acted stupid and they were unlucky.

In the US, Bruce Jenner recently killed someone while driving stupid and he is not going to jail. It was an accident, not on purpose. Many normal people have gotten away with the same thing. It is sad and something that needs to change as well.

In Japan it is called reckless driving even if the person runs out into the street and you go to jail. In America it is called D.W.S. (Driving While Stupid) You don't go to jail.

The Japanese system is way too severe and the American one is way too relaxed. Can't we have something in the middle?

Let the angry posts start now!

-3 ( +6 / -9 )

Ive driven for years and no Ive never been lucky, if you drive with your eyes where theyre supposed to be and you stop and slow down where kids are especially groups, you cannot end up pliwing into them and maim several killing one.

The problem is careless and teckless behaviour, the poor kid died for no reason and several are seriously injured.

I dont care about the US system, Japan should put the woman in jail and prevent her from driving ever again, at the very least.

The kids lives will never be the same, one child is gone forever, you cannot side with the driver at all on this sorry!

6 ( +8 / -2 )

@Americanhonor - I am not buying that one bit. Maybe you just don't drive as often as I do. I am a very safe driver. Hardly ever go over the speed limit. I stop at stop signs and obey all the rules, but things do happen. They do. No matter how hard you try you are never, ever NOT going to make a mistake that could get someone killed.

I will agree that she did make a huge mistake and was most likely driving way too carelessly. She was not paying attention and I am not siding with that at all. Nor am I saying that you or I could plow into a group of people by just being careless for a moment. Sorry if I came off sounding that way.

But I do believe the courts will deal very harshly with her. And like I said before, she does have to deal with this the rest of her life. I really don't feel too much pity for her either. But it does seem to me that a lot of people are careless and reckless drivers and I am sure there are quite a few right here posting angry comments who have been guilty of it and got lucky.

I didn't say that I was siding with the driver at all. I said the courts will take care of it.

I dont care about the US system, Japan should put the woman in jail and prevent her from driving ever again, at the very least.

I did not ask if anyone cared or not. I was just stating the the US system is too light and the Japanese one is too severe.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

What if as the news is saying that she mistook the gas for the brake? That is an accident. It is not driving too fast, running red lights or running through pedestrian crossings while the walk sign is on. It is a slip of the foot. It is not driving 100 kilometers down a school zone or a 40 kilometer road. It is a slip of the foot. If it is that, is that not understandable? The foot slipped?

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Two pedals, two. It'a an automatic, it's not even driving, essentially a powerful Go Cart. TWO PEDALS. Think, drive safe. Be in your Driving Mode and THINK. Save lives.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

What was she doing that resulted her car hitting the pedestrians. Speeding, texting, makeup or all 3. People go to jail for a few drinks and yet she will just get a slap on the wrist.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Good point, UK9393! So many people need to do exactly that as much as possible.

@Steve. I am sorry that is not how it works at all in Japan with drivers. She will go to jail without a doubt.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Please tell it as it really is JT. The poor kid died at the scene.

@mark901, were this kid someone close to you would you want the media to declare him "dead" before the doctors did?

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Can something that happens so regularly and so often really be called an accident?

Japan's pedestrian death rate is awful. Something drastic(or at least different) needs to be done. They could clear the streets of pedestrians and cyclists Robert Moses style(and suck the life out of the city) by building cities for cars, or they could follow the Danish and Dutch examples and try to actively discourage car use, and private car ownership, in cities as much as possible.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

We. Jet also remember that people in Japan walk in the road in many instances-very easy to have an accident here...

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Were this kid someone close to you would you want the media to declare him "dead" before the doctors did?

If he was dead, yes...

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

For a country with such efficient integrated public transport, we give cars too easy a ride. And God knows we can't afford to lose kids.

Pedestrianisation, traffic calming, and one-way streets would work wonders.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Im always amazed by the number of people who seem to be able to do this in Japan. Think about it - if she is stopped, then there is no need to go for the brake anyway, so no accidentally hitting the gas instead there. If she is moving, her foot is already ON the gas pedal. So how do you make the mistake of lifting your right foot up to go for the brake, not moving it to the left at ALL, and plunking it back down again exactly where it has just been?

Im sure she didn't deliberately mow these kids and the woman down, I just can't see how this mistaken brake thing happens so often.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Alarmingly narrow roads, bicycles, ped traffic and human error (behind the wheel) factor make these incidents all too common.

These circumstances will always plague japan's roads. Sad loss of life and injury to those children.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

After watching the news it looked like something went terribly go wrong with the driving. The pedestrian that was hit wasn't really near the kids. She was around the corner on the sidewalk on a bicycle. The car was stopped by those metal traffic barriers, and I think it saved her life and possibly others.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Shibahara Station is Osaka Monorail Station. There were a lot of fireflies around there. The automakers should spread automatic brake system throughout society to avoid such a tragedy.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I ride a motorbike to work. There's this one road where bicycles are coming at me from both directions...sometimes two abreast. Mothers in their chariots with young kids who aren't wearing helmets coming right at me!! I stop at a ped-x to let some kids cross and the cars coming the other way just keep on going. Everybody...and I mean EVERYBODY is jumping red lights!! What the heck is the hurry?? And all the time I'm thinking that no matter the circumstance, if I hit someone, I will be the one who gets it in the neck. Sort this mess out Japan!!

1 ( +1 / -0 )

According to the Mainichi Daily, Ms. Nakamura was returning from dropping off her daughter at a bus stop (not a station) when the acccident occurred on a 7.6 meter wide 2-way street with no pavement for pedestrians. Ms. Nakamura has told police she cannot remember what happened to cause the accident. Police are looking into the possibility that immediately before the collision Ms. Nakamura was attempting to pass a car ahead of her that had stopped at a 4-way intersection (no signal) before making a right turn. The police think that in this way the suspect's car entered the opposing lane, at the edge of which the children were walking.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

@Nathalie - It actually is quite simple. She lifted up her right foot from the gas peddle and placed it right back on it, thinking that it was the brake. It really is a mistake that a lot of people make. No doubt she is most likely a very tense ten and two driver. How many times have we seen that kind of driver in Japan? I have seen quite a few and I stay away from them cause I don't think they should be driving in the first place cause they are way too nervous. I was in the car with a woman about 20 years ago who did exactly that. Rammed right into the car in front of her. Fortunately no one was hurt and the damage was just a slight scratch on both bumpers. This could have just happened from being overly nervous about her ability to drive a car and bad luck.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

According to the news, she was on medication that causes drowsiness (stupid!), and she doesn't remember whether or not she stepped on the brakes.

Also, it seems that the 7 year old didn't die...he is critical condition and has not regained consciousness.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

WOW, if she was on meds and driving then that is just plain stupid. Never drive medication or drunk. Throw the book at her for that one if that is true.

I really hope the little one pulls through. I can not imagine being the parent of that child. I would want to pull her face off. Hope he makes a complete recovery.

Thanks for the update Mirai!

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites