JR West held a press conference on the afternoon of the 25th in response to the fact that passengers were trapped for a long time on a train that was stuck due to the heavy snow from the night of the 24th.

In this, the company said that it did not anticipate snowfall enough to use a device that melts the snow at the point of the track, and clarified that the sudden snow prevented the point from switching, which was the cause of the stagnation.

JR West held a press conference in Osaka city from 3:00 pm on the 25th to explain the background of the train getting stuck due to heavy snow and how to respond to passengers.



According to this, on the Kyoto Line and the Biwako Line, at around 7:00 pm on the 24th, the points of the tracks at Mukomachi Station in Muko City, Kyoto Prefecture did not switch, followed by the premises of Yamashina Station and Kyoto Station. In 21 places, it is no longer possible to switch.



As a result, a total of 15 trains were stuck and it took up to 10 hours for passengers to get off.

At JR, if the expected snowfall exceeds 10 centimeters, we use a device that melts the snow at the point of the track, but we were expecting about 8 centimeters of snow around Kyoto Station, so we prepared to use the device. It means that you didn't.



In fact, as a result of the sudden snowfall that exceeded expectations, it was not possible to switch due to snow getting caught in the points, etc., and the train was stuck.



In addition, about 7,000 people were temporarily trapped in the car, which was due to the fact that it took more time than expected, although priority was given to restoring points to get passengers off at the station.

Takahiro Mitsuno, head of JR West's Kinki General Headquarters, said at a press conference, "We apologize for the great inconvenience. In the middle of the night, it was snowing, so please refrain from asking customers to get off the train. It took me a while to make a decision when I received it. I would like to verify whether the decision process was correct."

What was happening at the time of the deadlock

What happened when the train got stuck?

I learned this from interviews with passengers.

Around 8:00 p.m. Trains stop one after another

Around 8:00 pm on the 24th, trains stopped running one after another on the JR Kyoto Line, Biwako Line, Kosei Line, etc.



A man living in Shiga Prefecture, who used the Kosei Line, took a train that left Kyoto Station around 7:20 pm, but the train stopped before arriving at the neighboring Yamashina Station.



For the next seven and a half hours, I was trapped inside the car.



In addition, a female instructor in her 20s who used the Kyoto Line boarded from Osaka Station around 6:30 pm, but the train stopped before arriving at Kyoto Station before 7:30 pm.



Another man on the Kyoto Line also left Osaka Station after 7:00 pm and was heading for Kyoto, but stopped at Nishioji Station, one station before, around 8:00 pm, and then stopped working. .



It was around this time that JR West announced that the Kyoto Line and the Biwako Line would be suspended.

People who are unwell in the car are one after another

Once stopped, the train did not move easily, and passengers were trapped inside the car for a long time.



According to passengers, there was an announcement in the car that ``there was a point failure'' or ``please wait for a while'', but there was little information about the prospect of resuming operation.



It is said that the passengers spent their time giving each other seats, but some of them remained standing for several hours.



According to a man who was on a train on the JR Kosei Line, about three hours after being confined, the number of people going to the toilet gradually increased, and people concentrated in the car with the toilet.



And it means that people complaining of poor physical condition one after another.



On other trains as well, several hours after they were locked up, the emergency button was pressed repeatedly, and the conductor sometimes asked, ``Are there any doctors or nurses among the passengers?''



In addition, some vehicles were treated like 'triage', in which paramedics checked to see if anyone was unwell.



According to the fire department along the JR Kyoto Line, a total of 13 people were transported by ambulance due to poor physical condition in this confinement.

Why didn't you let the passengers off early?

There have been cases of passengers walking on the tracks after several hours on a train that stopped between stations.



It was around 2:30 in the morning when the man who was trapped in the JR Kosei Line finally got out.



Seven and a half hours had passed since he was locked up.



It took about an hour to reach the nearest station, Yamashina Station, by walking on the tracks covered with snow.



This man said, "I wonder if JR could have taken measures a little earlier."



A female instructor in her 20s who used the JR Kyoto Line also wondered, "Why couldn't I make the decision to get off the train when there were people who were not feeling well?"

Even after getting off the train

After getting off the train, I could see the problem.



Due to long train delays, many passengers were left with no means of transportation to return to their homes.



It is said that the man who arrived at Yamashina Station by walking on the railroad did not spend his time in the building, but in an underground passage prepared by the city.



Another man arrived at Kyoto Station on the JR Kyoto Line at around 1:30 am. It is said that there was no choice but to spend it.



The surrounding karaoke and manga cafes were also full, so this man rented a car nearby and took a break in it to wake up in the morning.