Job Discussion Forums

Lynn · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 696 Location: in between

I just read the horrible news about the train accident in Osaka. I know we have a lot of Osaka members here. Please let us know if you are okay. Our prayers are with you.

Zzonkmiles · Joined: 05 Apr 2003 Posts: 309

I ride that line fairly often. I saw the pictures in the papers here and couldn't believe how one of the train cars was almost wrapped around the building. I still don't know if it was a random derailing or if the train hit a car or what. But this was a terrible terrible accident that touched many people, I'm sure. I read that the train's driver had less than one year's worth of experience and that this train was late. I wish I knew more.

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

Tragic.

Mainichi news is reporting that a train missed the station by 8 metres, was forced to back up, causing a 1 minute delay. Following this, train was running more quickly to make up for the time... A passenger in the front car reported the train moving faster than normal into the curve.... The emergency brakes were activated and the train derailed...

I'm not sure if I got that 100% right...

Linky here: http://mdn.mainichi.co.jp/news/20050425p2a00m0dm008001c.html

P.S. Wasn't Osaka. AMAGASAKI, Hyogo-ken. Near Kobe.

Synne · Joined: 06 Apr 2004 Posts: 269 Location: Tohoku

Something like five hours has already passed and they are still trying to get to ppl in the wreckage...

...very unfortunate.

Synne · Joined: 06 Apr 2004 Posts: 269 Location: Tohoku

10 ppl still inside.

Speed · Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 152 Location: Shikoku Land

Thanks Lynn for asking. Lucky I'm a lazy *beep* and was still in my futon when the train accident happened.

I came back from looking at the accident site a couple of hours ago.
It's about 5 minutes from my apartment.

The second car is wrapped-smashed like a pancake around the building and the first car is UNDER the second car and is hardly visible. I can't imaging anyone surviving from those first two cars.

What tripped me out the most was the action around the accident site.

It's a ZOO around the accident site now. I counted 12 helicopters swirling above in circles and at least a hundred news reporters, cameramen and journalists.

The number of looky-loos (including me) numbered in the hundreds. People were walking and bicycling through the yellow police tape and taking pictures and hanging out ignoring the policemen's calls to stay back.

The ambulances and emergency vehicles can barely get through.
There were hundreds of people bicycling and walking towards the accident site from surrounding neighborhoods as I came and went.

A long brand new fence, in front of an apartment next to the accident site, had about 30 looky-loos sitting on it and it completely collapsed, while I was standing next to it. That's messed up for the owner of the property.

Hopefully this kind of accident doesn't happen again. I love riding the excellently run trains here and always feel safe travelling on them.

Bad luck for those riding on that train this morning.

PS. If you read this same post in another forum, sorry you had to read it twice.

Dominique · Joined: 26 Aug 2004 Posts: 141 Location: Juso, Osaka

Mishark and I are ok. We are in Juso. We ride the Hankyu line which isn't connected at all to that JR one...

PAULH · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 4672 Location: Western Japan

me, second.

Gordon · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 5309 Location: Japan

canuck · Joined: 11 May 2003 Posts: 1921 Location: Japan

worlddiva · Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 3:09 pm Post subject:

Dominique and Mishark, glad to hear you're ok!

Synne · Joined: 06 Apr 2004 Posts: 269 Location: Tohoku

Update

73 dead, 442 injured

...horrible.

Zzonkmiles · Joined: 05 Apr 2003 Posts: 309

Stillnosheep,

I normally don't get involved with flame wars, but I have to say something this time.

Seriously, why even bother posting on this thread? I don't think your comments are welcome at all in light of what happened. I can see your point about how people who were killed not being able to post, but I think the larger point here is that someone with good intentions wanted to check up to see if maybe we were injured or somehow stranded on a stalled JR train because the tracks were closed, or if we had any friends or coworkers or neighbors who were riding that ill-fated train. Maybe one of the posters here was indeed in the area when this happened or was actually riding that train and has a story to share about it. If you weren't impacted by it, fine--ignore the thread. You don't need to post criticisms, especially in a thread like this. Come on now.

spidey · Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2005 5:51 am Post subject: Re: Osaka friends-are you okay?

Brooks · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 1369 Location: Sagamihara

well turns out the driver once fell asleep while driving a train and just before the crash was going 100 km per hour.
Before the crash he missed the previous station and lied and said he was closer to the station than he really was. He was punished before and thought he would get in trouble.
Two minutes later the train would be going nowhere.
The guy just murdered 73 people and destroyed 73 families.

Today in Ibaraki a train derailed but nobody was hurt. I guess JR is up shit`s creek.