It has been five years since the bus accident on a ski tour that killed 15 people, including university students, in Karuizawa Town, Nagano Prefecture.
An acquaintance of a male university student who died in an accident visited the memorial monument built near the site and prayed.
Five years ago, before dawn on January 15, 2016, a ski tour bus fell to the side of the road in Karuizawa Town, Nagano Prefecture without being able to turn the curve, killing 15 people including university students and injuring 26 people. ..
On the 15th, five years after the accident, many bouquets and paper cranes were handed to the memorial monument built near the site.
Around 1 am, a male acquaintance of a male college student who died in an accident visited and said, "It's a pity that they died in the accident, although they would have had fun in the future. I can only join hands. However, I hope that even one such accident will be reduced. "
On the 15th, the bereaved families of the deceased college students will hold a memorial service together for the first time on the day of the accident.
In this accident, the president of the company that operated the bus and a former employee in charge of operation management could predict that a serious accident could occur, but he gave guidance to drivers who are unfamiliar with driving large buses. Documents were sent on suspicion of accidental fatal injury due to negligence, and we are still investigating whether the Nagano District Public Prosecutors Office will prosecute.
In response to the accident, the audit system for bus companies has been strengthened, but due to the influence of the new coronavirus, private organizations in each region that provide patrol guidance have become stricter in operation, and are forced to take measures such as reducing the number of instructors.
In addition, the bereaved families continue to request the government to further strengthen safety measures such as the ideal way of renewing the license to drive a bus, and how to improve the safety of the bus is being asked again.
Post-accident investigation
Five years ago, around 2:00 am on January 15, 2016, a ski tour bus accelerated to about 95 km / h on a national highway in Karuizawa Town, Nagano Prefecture, and fell to the side of the road without being able to turn the curve, and passengers. A total of 15 people were killed and 26 were injured, including 13 university students and 2 crew members.
The Tokyo company "ESP", which operated the bus, did not make a roll call before the departure of the day, and did not create a ledger that records the health condition of the deceased driver. Many legal violations related to operation were found.
As a result of the investigation, in June four years ago, police were unfamiliar with driving a large bus even though they could predict the possibility of a serious accident for the president of "ESP" and a former employee who was in charge of operation management. I sent the documents on suspicion of accidental fatal injury in business because I neglected to give guidance to the driver.
Five years after the accident, the Nagano District Public Prosecutor's Office is still investigating whether to prosecute.
The bereaved family is demanding that the president and former employees be prosecuted for the need to clarify where responsibility lies to prevent recurrence.
Safety measures after an accident
Following the accident, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has been promoting bus safety measures.
We will strengthen the audit system for bus companies, renew the business license of chartered bus companies every 5 years, revoke the license if safety measures are insufficient, and if a serious violation is found in an unannounced bus audit , Measures such as stopping the operation immediately are taken.
In the accident five years ago, the bus company undertook work with a "lower limit" below the fare set by the government as the minimum necessary for safe operation, and the attitude of neglecting safety became a problem. ..
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, even after the accident, the fare set by the government has been exceeded, but there are still cases where the bus company pays a "commission" to the travel agency and the fare actually falls below the lower limit. is.
For this reason, we are strengthening our investigations into business operators and taking measures such as stopping operations if we determine that we cannot secure costs for safety.
In addition, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has set up a private institution to provide patrol guidance to bus companies after the accident, and aims to provide patrol guidance to all companies that are engaged in the chartered bus business once a year by next year.
However, due to the influence of the new coronavirus, the operation has become difficult, and more than half of the 10 private institutions nationwide have reduced the number of instructors or postponed new hires, making it an issue to maintain the system.
Yoshinori Tahara, Representative of the Bereaved Family Association "A sense of crisis about the weathering of the accident"
Yoshinori Tahara, the representative of the Bereaved Family Association, who lost his 19-year-old son in a ski bus accident in Karuizawa Town, Nagano Prefecture, tried to prevent the accident from weathering and appeal for recurrence, and the bereaved family on the day of the accident for the first time. We called for everyone to perform a memorial service.
Yoshinori Tahara (55), who lives in Suita City, Osaka, lost his second son Hiroshi (19 at the time) in an accident.
Before the turning point of 5 years, I visited Hiroshi's grave on the 10th of this month and said, "I am sad and sad again considering the 5 years that my son who could only live for 19 years was supposed to walk. Don't cause a tragic accident again. And I strengthened my desire not to waste the deaths of my children. "
It is said that Mr. Tahara continued to think about what he could do immediately after the accident and promised Mr. Hiroshi to prevent recurrence when he went to the night.
Approximately one month after the accident, he continued to request the government to strengthen bus safety measures by setting up a bereaved family association, and most of the contents were included in the recurrence prevention measures issued by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. ..
Since autumn, we have been discussing with the National Police Agency to prevent recurrence.
He called for a memorial service for all the bereaved families on the day of the first accident.
I don't know how many bereaved families will gather due to the spread of the new coronavirus, but Mr. Tahara said, "Five years is a big milestone, and I have a sense of crisis that the accident will be weathered beyond that. It is important to work to remind us of the accident at the turning point, and we recognize that such activities will become more important over time. I think there is still work to be done to prevent recurrence. " I did.
Hibiki Nishibori's father "Time has stopped"
The father of a university student, Hibiki Nishibori (19 at the time), who died in a ski bus accident in Karuizawa Town, Nagano Prefecture, commented to NHK, saying, "I don't feel that five years have passed since the accident, and time has stopped since then. Every day I feel that the accident has robbed us of the future of our family as well as the future of Hibiki, "he said.
Along with the comments, a photo of the entrance ceremony day of the university was also sent, "Most of the same period was graduation in March, and when I think that Hibiki was in it, I can think of the feeling at the time of admission. I will send you a photo of the ceremony. "
Regarding the fact that the prosecution's investigation is still ongoing, he says, "I take it for granted that I will be prosecuted, so I want you to investigate firmly without rushing."
Kiyoshi Nishihara's mother "I'm sad"
Five years after the accident, the mother of a deceased university student, Kiki Nishihara (21 at the time), made a comment.
The mother said about the last five years, "I didn't expect my son's life to end at the age of 21 that day, five years after I couldn't meet my second son. If I hadn't had that accident, I'm now 26. I'm sure a junior high school teacher. I think he would have been working hard on club activities and studying. I realized that the future he was supposed to have ended there, and that his smile and warmth had disappeared, which made me even more sad. ".
And about the fact that the prosecution's investigation is still ongoing, "It is painful that the criminal responsibility of the president of the bus company and the operation manager is not clear. How long do we have to keep such a painful feeling? Nagano District Public Prosecutor's Office I would like to ask you to make the decision to prosecute as soon as possible. "
Comment from the president of the bus company
Misaku Takahashi, president of ESP, a Tokyo company that operated the bus that caused the accident, said, "It's been five years since the accident, and my current feelings are the same as on the day, and I'm full of apologies. I'm dead again. We pray from the bottom of our hearts for the souls of all those who have become ill, and pray for the earliest possible recovery of those who are still undergoing medical treatment. In addition, we pray for the bereaved families and all those involved. We sincerely apologize to you. I'm really sorry. "
President Takahashi visits the scene every year as a memorial service on the day of the accident, but this time he was ahead of schedule on the 7th of this month, the day before the emergency declaration of the new coronavirus was issued to Tokyo and other prefectures. It was.
"We considered the possibility that the infection situation would worsen," he said.