Charred bodies found in Japan tunnel collapse
Posted: 02 December 2012 2019 hrs
OTSUKI, Japan: Japanese rescuers found five charred bodies in a
highway tunnel that collapsed on Sunday, crushing cars and
triggering a blaze, and sparking fears of another
cave-in.
At least seven people were missing inside the nearly five-kilometre
(three mile)-long tunnel. Witnesses spoke of terrifying scenes as
at least one vehicle burst into flames, sending out clouds of
blinding, acrid smoke.
For several hours rescuers were forced to suspend their efforts to
reach those believed trapped under the more-than one tonne concrete
ceiling panels that crashed from the roof as engineers warned more
debris could fall.
Emergency crews who rushed to the Sasago tunnel on the Chuo
Expressway, 80 kilometres (50 miles) west of the capital, were
hampered by thick smoke billowing from the
entrance.
Dozens of people abandoned their vehicles on the Tokyo-bound
section of carriageway, and ran for one of the emergency exits or
for the mouth, where they huddled in bitter winter
weather.
Emergency crews equipped with breathing apparatus battled around a
third of the way into the tunnel, where they found 110 metres
(yards) of concrete panels had come crashing down, crushing at
least two vehicles.
Hours after the collapse, engineers warned the structure could be
unstable, forcing rescuers to halt their work as a team of experts
assessed the danger.
It was during this inspection that accompanying police officers
confirmed the first deaths.
"What we found resembled bodies inside a vehicle, they were
blackened. We have visually confirmed them but have yet to take
them out for closer examination," an official told
AFP.
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency later confirmed there were
five bodies, adding another vehicle had also been
burned.
One man who fled the tunnel told the Jiji Press news agency he had
watched in horror as concrete crashed down onto a vehicle in front
of him, leaving little more than a mound of dust and
debris.
Voices cried out "Help" and "Anyone please help" from the pile
before a young woman emerged with her clothes torn, he was reported
as saying.
She could not stop trembling, he told the agency, as he asked her
how many had been inside the vehicle.
"She said: 'All of my friends and my boyfriend...Please help
them,'" said the man, adding the flames were too
strong.
Footage from security cameras in the late afternoon showed large
concrete panels in a V shape, apparently having collapsed from the
middle, with teams of men in protective gear scrambling over
them.
A fire department official said workers were still trying to reach
a van in which at least one person was believed
trapped.
Chikaosa Tanimoto, professor emeritus of tunnel engineering at
Osaka University told NHK the concrete panels are suspended from
pillars.
"It is conceivable that the parts connecting the ceiling panels and
pillars, or pillars themselves, have deteriorated, affected by
vibrations from earthquakes and passing vehicles," he
said.
An official from highways operator NEXCO said material degradation
was a possibility, adding the risk of further collapse remained.
His colleague said the ceiling had undergone its regular
five-yearly inspection in September this year.
An AFP reporter said two large orange tents had been erected at the
tunnel mouth and a helicopter remained nearby, ready to ferry the
injured to hospital.
The tunnel, which passes through hills near Mount Fuji, is one of
the longest in Japan. It sits on a major road connecting Tokyo with
the centre and west of the country.
A man in his 30s, who was just 50 metres (yards) ahead of the
caved-in spot, recounted details of the terrifying
experience.
"A concrete part of the ceiling fell off all of a sudden when I was
driving inside. I saw fire coming from a crushed car. I was so
frightened I got out of my car right away and walked one hour to
get outside," he told NHK.
Japan has an extensive web of highways with thousands of tunnels,
usually several hundred metres long. Millions of cars use the
network every day.
- AFP/ck
Source:
CNA
