Japanese troops mobilised to dig out snow-stranded cars

Japan’s military mobilised on Tuesday to help dig out more than 200 vehicles stuck in heavy snow, officials said.

Western Japan’s Tottori prefecture has seen heavy snowfall since Monday night with a record one metre (3.3 feet) accumulating in one town.

Tottori Governor Shinji Hirai had requested the military aid early Tuesday.

“In addition to 28 personnel who arrived in the early morning, 33 more are on the way,” Daisuke Amano of the prefecture’s disaster prevention unit told AFP.

He said there were roughly 240 cars unable to move at 7:30 am (2230 GMT Monday).

“The majority of them had been stuck since Monday evening,” he said.

But after troops arrived to help clear snow the number of affected vehicles was reduced to about 100, the prefecture said.

Japanese media said that at one point more than 300 vehicles had been stuck, though there were no reports of any injuries. Some people reportedly left their cars to seek shelter while other drivers waited for the roads to be cleared.

The Japan Meteorological Agency has issued a warning for heavy snowfall in the region through Tuesday evening.

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