bonsai growers from Tokyo relocated and formed a new community in Saitama Prefecture This marked the beginning of Omiya Bonsai Village To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the village's founding, the Omiya Bonsai Art Museum reopened on March 21 following a major renovation.  The museum's updated concept presents it as an art museum dedicated to bonsai It also features historical and ethnographic exhibits related to the craft One of the renovation's highlights is the garden pond It has been expanded from its original 70 square meters (753 sq ft) to 100 square meters (1076 sq ft) with a bonsai placed at the tip of a small peninsula The tree's reflection on the mirror-like surface evokes the image of Mount Fuji inverted in a lake Currently on display is a Japanese white pine named Seiryu ("Blue Dragon") the tree's shape resembles a massive dragon coiling along the water's edge and lifting its head skyward Its reflection in the pond adds to the powerful and majestic impression A new water system has also been introduced creating the soothing sound of running water This dynamic movement contrasts beautifully with the stillness of the mirrored section they were previously protected with shade covers The renovation includes a misting system around the pond which helps reduce stress on the trees and also provides relief for visitors during hot weather Many came from countries such as the United States and Australia a sign that bonsai has become a globally recognized cultural symbol Author: Kazuya Yanagihara You must be logged in to post a comment ' + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.webview_notification_text + ' " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_title + " " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_text + " What appears to be a human body has been found inside the cabin of a truck swallowed by a massive sinkhole that opened at an intersection in Yashio adding they believe it is the missing male driver Firefighters and police plan to enter the sewer pipe in Saitama Prefecture as early as Friday to begin full-scale recovery operations A figure resembling a human body was visually confirmed early Thursday during the first entry into the pipe since the incident conducted to assess water flow and hydrogen sulfide gas levels the prefectural government determined that the risk of further disaster inside the sewer pipe was low enough to proceed with entry swallowed the truck of a driver in his 70s and eventually expanded to about 40 meters wide and 15 meters deep The truck's cabin was swept roughly 30 meters downstream with priority given to stabilizing the sewer the prefecture completed bypass work to divert a large volume of sewage water Authorities plan to use a sloped access route built from the sinkhole to the sewer pipe to reach the truck cabin A separate vertical shaft has been prepared to lift the cabin using heavy machinery "The entire prefecture has been working together to enable rescue as soon as possible We will continue our efforts to ensure access to the driver's cabin," Saitama Gov Motohiro Ono said at a disaster response meeting Thursday Missing truck cabin located in sewer pipe near Saitama sinkhole 2-week search ends for trapped driver inside sinkhole near Tokyo To have the latest news and stories delivered to your inbox Simply enter your email address below and an email will be sent through which to complete your subscription Please check your inbox for a confirmation email Thank you for reaching out to us.We will get back to you as soon as possible Your browser does not support JavaScript, or it is disabled．Please check the site policy for more information National Report Saitama Prefecture—Firefighters on May 2 found a body believed to be the driver of a 2-ton truck that plunged into a sinkhole at an intersection here in January Although police said they were still confirming the identity of the body the trucker’s family and employer released statements describing him as a warm-hearted and popular person The search and rescue operation for the trucker who was trapped in a ruptured sewer pipe about 10 meters beneath the surface had been delayed due to continuous water leaks additional cave-ins and extremely precarious conditions About 20 firefighters and police officers entered the 4.75-meter-diameter pipe on May 1 for the first time since the accident and conducted a visual inspection They confirmed that the truck cabin was still within the pipe and that a person was in the driver’s seat After checking hydrogen sulfide concentrations and sewage water levels in the pipe they determined the risk of a secondary disaster was low firefighters walked within the pipe toward the truck cabin The body was pulled out and taken away by car The ruptured pipe is believed to have spewed out water that eroded the ground under the prefectural road intersection in the Yashio 2-chome district The prefecture had been working since mid-February to create a temporary drainage pipe to divert the flow of sewage water away from the truck cabin Workers also excavated holes from the ground level directly above the driver’s seat and from an area on the upstream side of the sewage pipe The work was essentially completed at the end of April about 10 days earlier than initially planned released a statement through the prefectural police saying they still cannot believe that he is gone strong-minded person “who could be relied on for anything.” wanting to return home alive until he ran out of strength,” the statement said but he was always smiling and had a very kind and gentle personality,” the family said and his great-grandchildren with even more love He was really looking forward to watching them grow up.” The truck driver’s employer also described him as having a warm personality but that didn’t stop him from being a lovable honest person,” the employer said in a statement he was the life of the party,” the statement continued the whole place was naturally filled with smiles The employer said the trucker “worked for us for over 20 years and he expressed a strong desire to work as long as he was able to.” (This article was written by Shun Nakamura and Masahide Miyajima.) Trucker trapped in 10-meter-deep sinkhole in eastern Saitama cave-ins hamper rescue of trucker stuck in growing sinkhole Saitama budgets 4 billion yen for repair work at Yashio sinkhole Residents asked to sacrifice again as rescue work at sinkhole stalls Governor: Three months needed to rescue trucker from sinkhole Information on the latest cherry blossom conditions Please right click to use your browser’s translation function.) A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II In-house News and Messages No reproduction or republication without written permission Today's print edition Home Delivery Rescuers have recovered the body of a truck driver who was swallowed by a huge sinkhole in Saitama Prefecture three months ago A road in the city of Yashio caved in during morning rush hour in late January while the 74-year-old man was driving his truck on it.googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1499653692894-0'); }); which was caused by corroded sewerage pipes In a time of both misinformation and too much information quality journalism is more crucial than ever.By subscribing Your subscription plan doesn't allow commenting. To learn more see our FAQ Sponsored contents planned and edited by JT Media Enterprise Division May 2 (Jiji Press)--A search team on Friday found a person inside the cab of a truck that fell into a sinkhole created on a road in Saitama Prefecture in January and confirmed the death of what appeared to be the 74-year-old driver of the truck The body was taken to the Saitama Prefectural Police's Soka Station past 8 a.m Police officers and firefighters started searching for the missing male truck driver at around 4:20 a.m following the installation of a ventilation system to remove deadly hydrogen sulfide from a sewer pipe in which the cab had been stuck and a scaffold for going inside the pipe under the prefectural road in the city of Yashio The truck fell into the sinkhole created at the center of an intersection on Jan The road collapse is believed to have been caused by the pipe's rupture Search work had been prevented by the soft ground conditions and the sinkhole's expansion due to a massive influx of rainwater May 1 (Jiji Press)--Police and other authorities on Thursday entered and checked the inside of the sewage pipe at the site of a road collapse in late January in Yashio authorities will begin efforts as early as Friday to find the 74-year-old driver of a truck that fell into the sinkhole at the site a bus carrying a total of some 20 police officers firefighters and others arrived at the site Wearing double protective suits with oxygen cylinders and masks they headed for the pipe about 10 meters below the surface According to prefectural government and other officials the inspection was conducted early in the morning because of a relatively small amount of sewage Three teams were mobilized for the inspection and two of them worked for about 20 minutes each the central part of an intersection collapsed and the passing truck plunged into the sinkhole Authorities found what appears to be human remains on the driver's seat of a truck that fell into a sinkhole after a road collapsed in late January in Yashio Motohiro Ono gave the news to reporters on Thursday after police and firefighters started that morning to inspect the inside of a sewage pipe at the site for the first time in hopes of finding the 74-year-old driver of a truck that fell into the sinkhole the report said.googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1499653692894-0'); }); the inspection was conducted early in the morning because the time period sees a relatively small amount of sewage the central part of an intersection collapsed and a passing truck plunged into the sinkhole Since a drone survey confirmed a shape resembling a person inside the cab in February the prefectural government has been conducting drilling work to reach the driver's seat while installing a makeshift pipe to divert sewage The construction of the bypass pipe was completed on April 24 Ono had said at the time that the prefecture will begin the inspection inside the sewage pipe where the truck cab remains as soon as possible The victim of Monday's fatal stabbing in the city of Saitama may have been a random target is believed to have been a stranger to the 24-year-old alleged attacker investigative sources said.googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1499653692894-0'); }); including an analysis of data from the victim's smartphone As Taniuchi lived and worked near the scene of the incident police believe that he committed the attack randomly in an area he is familiar with Tegara was attacked near the entrance of an apartment building where she lived at around 8:15 p.m She died from organ damage after being stabbed several times in the upper body Taniuchi turned up at a nearby police box on Tuesday and was arrested Footage from several security cameras shows a man who appears to be Taniuchi hanging around within 1 kilometers of the scene but not following in the victim's footsteps Taniuchi began working for a construction firm located about 500 meters from the scene in October last year He lived in a dormitory in the firm's building he worked at a construction site in Tokyo and returned to the firm around 2 p.m. Mingtiandi Asia real estate and outbound investment news Lost your password? Register Now 2025/04/30 by Leave a Comment The divested assets include GLP Kasukabe in Saitama prefecture GLP J-REIT has agreed to sell three warehouse assets to an undisclosed buyer for JPY 23.5 billion ($160 million) marking the Tokyo-listed trust’s biggest disposal to date The set of properties includes two sheds in Greater Tokyo’s Saitama prefecture and a two-building complex in the northern city of Koriyama in Fukushima prefecture, the trust’s manager said Wednesday in a stock filing The warehouses comprise 88,320 square metres (950,669 square feet) of leasable area and will change hands at a 30 percent premium to book value which is controlled by US-based Ares Management The divestment will help GLP J-REIT achieve its goal of JPY 20 billion in assets sales a year as the trust looks to boost its annual dividend per unit to JPY 7,000 “The gain on sale will be distributed to unitholders of GLP J-REIT as dividends and the remaining amount of the sales proceeds will be used to enhance unitholders value through active implementation of various initiatives such as share buyback or fund allocation to acquire properties in the future,” the manager said The highest-valued of the target assets, GLP Kawajima in Saitama prefecture, is set to trade for JPY 14.5 billion. Spanning 42,187 square metres of leasable area, the four-storey shed was built in 2017 by the REIT’s sponsor, GLP Japan, which was acquired by Los Angeles-based Ares in March GLP J-REIT executive director Yuma Kawatsuji was built in 2004 and contains 18,460 square metres of leasable area while GLP Koriyama III in Fukushima dates to the 1990s and has 27,672 square metres of leasable area The Saitama sheds are fully occupied and the Koriyama complex is 99.8 percent occupied GLP J-REIT anticipates a gain on disposal of JPY 5.2 billion the trust’s largest ever from a single transaction The Kawajima and Kasukabe assets are due to be transferred on 30 June and the Koriyama complex on 1 September GLP J-REIT’s portfolio will consist of 84 properties with a total acquisition value of JPY 866.1 billion ($6.1 billion) The REIT’s manager announced in February that it had broken ground on the development of its GLP Narashino II project near Tokyo The trust is redeveloping a 55,185 square metre site in Chiba prefecture’s Narashino City into a 127,680 square metre which is expected to be completed in December 2026 GLP J-REIT acquired the land for GLP Narashino II in 2013 for JPY 8.3 billion Comment * document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id" "ae49bd69a1efc1ddcd19e709a8b13820" );document.getElementById("gc887575b1").setAttribute( "id" More MTD TV Videos>> More Industry Professionals>> More Sponsored Features>> Police sent a 48-year-old man to prosecutors Wednesday after he allegedly broke into a cram school in Saitama Prefecture while completely naked Authorities believe he may have also been involved in roughly 20 incidents that took place in the 90 minutes before his arrest — including a fatal hit-and-run and multiple assaults — with at least 10 people injured in total was arrested Monday evening at a cram school in the city of Soka He faces initial charges of trespassing and assault after allegedly striking a 59-year-old male staff member with a mug and injuring a 14-year-old girl by grabbing her arm.googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1499653692894-0'); }); Saitama Prefectural Police said the suspect’s rampage appeared to have begun at around 8:15 p.m The first emergency call believed to be regarding the suspect came from a person who reported a “suspicious tattooed man driving slowly through a residential area.” April 30 (Jiji Press)--A man arrested for allegedly killing a high school girl in Saitama Prefecture was quoted as saying that his personality had been distorted by abuse and that he was at the bottom of society It was also learned that blood stains on a knife found at the crime scene and on his pants were identified by DNA analysis as belonging to Taniuchi and the victim Taniuchi was initially silent after his arrest but changed his attitude and said that he killed a high school girl who was wearing a uniform He also said that he walked around the scene before the attack looking for a target while pretending to be a passerby All the latest on Saitama's heroic return in One-Punch Man season 3 One-Punch Man season 3 has been narrowed down to a single month Saitama and his deadly fists are coming back to our small screens in 2025 we'll run through that release date window as well as what else is to come as the series adapts the Monster Association arc There's even a new trailer to get stuck into In fact, from what we've seen so far, there's plenty to suggest the new anime could be among this year's leading lights We've even gotten some new villain reveals that may at least make our main hero sweat a bit this time we've put together a cheat sheet for One-Punch Man season 3 including a look at the manga chapters it could adapt in the upcoming season One-Punch Man season 3 is releasing in October 2025 Given that most fall releases drop in the first week of October we're still waiting on an actual date to be confirmed we're only months away from Saitama's return One-Punch Man season 3 will continue the Monster Association arc from Yusuke Marata's manga which sees the Monster Association arrive at the Hero Association with a message about wanting monsters and heroes to co-exist – something which quickly turns around to be a ruse the Monster Association wants an all-out war between heroes and monsters hero hunter Garou is confronted by various heroes wanting to prove their worth to the Hero Association – including Death Gatling It leads to a fight between Saitama's protege Genos and Garou with the latter being saved by the Monster Association's Phoenix Man Saitama – having been sidetracked by attempting to best King at video games – comes and saves the day He kills the monster Elder Centipede and remarks that a despondent Genos needs "power" to improve as a hero These featured Monster King Orochi and Gyoro-Gyoro the Monster Association is basically confirmed at this point A season of One-Punch Man typically covers around 40-50 chapters of the source material we could expect this season to end around chapter 123 – and the debut of a character known as Psykos (to say any more would be a significant spoiler…) expect the perpetually bored Saitama to continue fighting monsters alongside his fellow heroes and Garou to spend more time with the Monster Association as an all-out war ensues Society's reaction to the monsters differs with one splinter group – The Monster Worship Party – submitting itself to the monsters shows Saitama flanked by a series of lower-ranked (but no less formidable) heroes as they face down the Monster Association and we don't see any massive fights just yet but it does end with Saitama promising to punch Garou The music in the teaser is pretty killer as well so definitely check it out if you want to get hyped for season 3 The One-Punch Man season 3 cast has mostly been confirmed thanks to its latest trailer and the Monster Association’s Gyoro Gyoro (Takehito Koyasu) Other characters include Terrible Tornado (Aoi Yuki) Staff studio are back on animated duties too the official One-Punch Man Twitter account has also unveiled season 3 art for the characters Atomic Samurai and Zombieman from season 3 character designer Ryosuke Shirokawa US fans can likely expect the series to also be available on Hulu (just like the other seasons) currently this is just speculation on our part We'll keep you posted as we wait for more information In the meantime, check out our list of the best Crunchyroll anime if you're looking for something new to watch and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager you will then be prompted to enter your display name one of the world’s largest express transportation companies is enhancing its service to better serve customers importing to certain areas in Koshigaya City Importers can now receive their deliveries one day earlier for inbound parcel and freight shipments arriving in Japan on a weekday Koshigaya City boasts a thriving manufacturing sector and is home to many small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) that produce high-quality products used around the world Approximately 70% of FedEx customers in the area are businesses in diverse industries such as machinery and information communication technology (ICT) equipment all of which are actively trading to produce and sell their products we recognize that a more connected and globalized economy has transformed the manufacturing landscape with materials and components sourced from around the world,” said Kei Alan Kubota “The speed of delivery is critical for these businesses We are committed to supporting importers by accelerating the delivery of shipments to the area helping them maintain a competitive edge.” an innovative solution utilizing advanced technology to address the increasing complexities of international trade The national government and all local governments that manage roads and sewerage systems must take the issue of deteriorating infrastructure seriously and act quickly. The ongoing drama of the collapse of a prefectural road in Yashio City, Saitama Prefecture The collapse formed a massive sinkhole that swallowed up a truck and its still-missing driver.  the outlook for rescue and restoration efforts at that disaster site remains unclear when a highway intersection suddenly caved in An underground sewer pipe apparently corroded This caused soil and sand to flow into the cavity under the road which Something resembling the driver's seat of the truck that had fallen into the hole was found downstream inside the sewer pipe the whereabouts of the driver remain unknown The search is proving difficult amid fears of secondary collapses. Therefore, it will likely take quite some time to correct the situation. Residents in the surrounding neighborhoods continue to face inconveniences due to evacuations and water-saving measures.  the sewer pipes have been in use for 42 years and are inspected every five years it was determined that no immediate repairs were necessary.  Road collapses caused by aging sewer pipes have been occurring one after another in various locations. Saitama Prefecture is establishing a third-party committee to investigate the causes of this accident. It will look into such things as the causal relationship with deterioration, as well as construction and management methods.  It is also imperative to determine whether inspections have been adequate We would like to see a thorough investigation into the causes and implementation of countermeasures.  The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has ordered emergency inspections in seven prefectures All of them manage large sewer pipes similar to the one in Saitama The deterioration of infrastructure features constructed in large volume during Japan's period of rapid economic growth is a grave issue nationwide Many facilities have generally reached the end of their 50-year service life This is evident from accidents resulting in damage About 7% of sewer pipes nationwide had already exceeded their service life by the end of FY2012 That figure is expected to jump to 40% within 20 years and other infrastructure also face similar challenges Local governments are forced to conduct a tremendous volume of inspections and repairs due to financial difficulties and a lack of personnel Meanwhile, drones and artificial intelligence (AI) in rescue work are becoming more widespread the public and private sectors must work together to accelerate the development of even more efficient inspection methods The infrastructure that supports society and the economy is after all the foundation of a nation.  As we enter an era of seriously aging infrastructure the national government needs to accelerate its strategy of supporting local governments it must advance the technology available to address these needs Author: Editorial Board You must be logged in to post a comment Police and firefighters wearing oxygen tanks on Thursday entered the sewer pipe where a truck driver is believed to have become trapped for the first time since the January accident in which the man’s vehicle fell into a sinkhole in a prefectural road in Yashio please disable the ad blocking feature and reload the page This website uses cookies to collect information about your visit for purposes such as showing you personalized ads and content By clicking “Accept all,” you will allow the use of these cookies Users accessing this site from EEA countries and UK are unable to view this site without your consent hoping to figure out a way to find and bring back the 74-year-old driver 20 personnel from the Saitama prefectural police the Tokyo Fire Department and other agencies entered the 4.75-meter-diameter pipe through a hole dug in the ground and proceeded toward the area where the truck’s cab was located The personnel were divided into three groups each of which worked inside the pipe for about 20 minutes at a time Over the course of about two hours in total they are believed to have checked conditions such as the state of the cab hydrogen sulfide concentration levels and the safety of the search route Our weekly ePaper presents the most noteworthy recent topics in an exciting © 2025 The Japan News - by The Yomiuri Shimbun there is growing concern over aging underground infrastructure a leading Japanese agricultural machinery company is also active in the water infrastructure sector It is currently focusing on a "rehabilitation" method that strengthens aging sewer pipes by inserting a new pipe inside the existing one and securing it with resin we can carry out renovations without road closures and at a lower cost." Kubota will launch a system that uses artificial intelligence to predict water pipe damage caused by natural disasters such as earthquakes.  The system combines two AI models — one for assessing pipe deterioration and another for predicting disaster-related damage Identifying high-risk areas for water outages enables authorities to prioritize earthquake-resistant upgrades in critical locations Underground gas pipes and fiber-optic cables were also damaged in the recent road collapse in Saitama While large-scale collapses are not expected to be frequent Osaka Gas has been promoting flexible polyethylene gas pipes since the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake These pipes are designed to withstand external forces and reduce the risk of gas leaks This makes them more resilient to minor ground collapses the company has segmented its pipeline network to minimize supply disruptions in case of damage which provides telecommunications services in western Japan has reinforced its underground communication tunnels These tunnels have been strengthened to withstand earthquakes with a seismic intensity of 7 ensuring minimal disruption to telecommunications Author: Hiroto Kuwajima You must be logged in to post a comment A 74-year-old truck driver fell into a sinkhole that appeared at a prefectural road intersection in Yashio City Initially 10 meters (33 ft) wide and 5 meters deep the hole merged with another opening nearby the massive crater measured 40 meters wide and 15 meters deep Large amounts of water from a drainage pipe and soil continue to flow into the hole The surrounding area remains highly unstable The recent sinkhole is believed to have been caused by an underground sewer pipe located about 10 meters below the surface a drainage pipe about 2 meters underground channels rainwater and runoff into the area Road collapses have been occurring more frequently across Japan with over 10% linked to sewer system issues Local governments are struggling to replace aging sewer pipes but progress has been slow due to high costs.  Japan's infrastructure ministry has requested an emergency inspection of large sewer pipes connected to major sewage treatment facilities similar to those involved in the Saitama road collapse hydrogen sulfide from human waste and other substances in the sewer pipes likely reacted with air to form sulfuric acid The acid gradually corroded the concrete pipes Soil then began flowing into the broken sections a routine inspection conducted in fiscal year 2021 determined that immediate repairs were not necessary approximately 10,000 sinkholes occurred nationwide in fiscal year 2022 Sewer-related collapses tend to be more common in cities Japan's sewer system expanded rapidly during the country's economic boom The standard service life of concrete sewer pipes is 50 years Older urban areas that implemented sewer systems earlier are now experiencing severe deterioration a sinkhole appeared at an intersection on Chuo-Odori Avenue in Chuo Ward The collapse created a hole about 1 meter (3.3 ft) in diameter and 1.3 meters deep Investigations revealed that a sewer pipe installed in 1954 had been damaged allowing water to leak and erode the surrounding soil The pipe had not undergone regular inspections since its installation Japan had a total of approximately 490,000 kilometers of sewer pipes only about 7% have exceeded their service life but this proportion is expected to surge to 40% in the next 20 years Maintaining and managing sewer pipes is extremely costly revenue from sewer usage fees is not expected to increase making it difficult to replace aging pipes quickly the city owns the sewer pipes but outsources maintenance and management to a private company with the costs fully funded by the municipality The city also replaces approximately 55 kilometers of its 5,000-kilometer sewer network each year.  "To prevent waste from accumulating inside sewer pipes we adjust pipe gradients during replacements We also use cameras for inspections rather than relying solely on service life estimates to mitigate risks." some municipalities have recently begun using artificial intelligence to assess pipe deterioration Author: Fumiya Suzuki with additional data from The Sankei Shimbun You must be logged in to post a comment The Saitama Prefectural Police on Tuesday arrested a 24-year-old man for allegedly stabbing a 15-year-old high school girl with a knife to death outside a residential building in the city of Saitama on Monday evening police said.googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1499653692894-0'); }); was attacked as she was returning home Monday evening by a man who was standing near the entrance of the building Authorities received an emergency call by a witness at around 8:15 p.m on Monday who reported that “a woman is being beaten” outside the condominium Another emergency call was made by a family member who said “My sister has been stabbed with a knife.” Police said Tegara was found bleeding with stab wounds and was quickly transported to a hospital arrived at a nearby police box where officers took him into custody he had injuries to his hands and other areas and received medical treatment The incident took place in a residential neighborhood about 2 kilometers west of the Minami-Yono Station especially since she lived in the same building,” said an 18-year-old male resident on January 28 was straight from a disaster film: A giant hole appeared without warning in a busy intersection The accident sent city and prefectural officials scrambling to assess the damage and draw up a response news cameras followed first responders as they struggled in vain to reach the trapped driver of the truck Conditions at the site worsened in the following days as the sinkhole grew to 40 meters in diameter shifting efforts to extract the driver from a rescue to a recovery operation The gaping sinkhole at the intersection in Yashio The sinkhole was caused by a massive rupture in a sewer pipe running deep below the prefectural road the 4.74-meter-wide reinforced concrete pipeline had corroded at a bend slowly eaten away by sulfuric acid until it finally collapsed The environment inside sewage pipes is ideal to the formation of the caustic compound which is created when hydrogen sulfide built up from the anaerobic breakdown of organic material mixes with oxygen Hydrogen sulfide tends to concentrate at curves and other areas where the rate of flow is disrupted Compounding the scale of the damage in Yashio was the poor soil condition under the intersection An investigation found the soil to be a loose mixture of silt and clay which readily poured through the hole in the pipe carving out a cavity beneath the road as the rupture grew Experts investigating the site noted that using a firmer backfill when installing the pipeline would have reduced or even prevented the cave-in Workers at the site of the initial collapse on January 28 The sinkhole initially measured 10 meters in diameter but soon grew to 40 meters The impact of the collapse extended far beyond the immediate disruption to traffic and businesses in the area affecting wastewater services for 1.2 million residents in the prefecture Authorities called on inhabitants of surrounding cities to reduce their water usage pressing them to curtail activities like bathing and washing clothing wastewater was collected to reduce the flow to the damaged pipe with the effluent then chlorinated and released into a nearby river The wide scale of service disruption is linked to Japan’s approach to wastewater management Wastewater operations are overseen by public sewage systems operated by a single municipality or regional sewage systems operated jointly by multiple municipalities The pipeline in Yashio was in the latter category and carried wastewater collected from 12 municipalities While such regional management systems provide significant advantages to cities in terms of efficiency and cost savings the failed pipe and resulting sinkhole illustrates the risk of widespread disruption of services when anything goes wrong the incident laid bare the fragile state of Japan’s sewage infrastructure who heads the prefectural panel studying the gargantuan task of repairing the damaged pipe highlighted the direness of the situation when he warned that reconstruction could take at least two or three years to complete Sewerage systems are a backbone of modern societies serving to preserve sanitary conditions in communities The loss of services has serious repercussions on public health and welfare Morita’s stark assessment has shaken public confidence and leaves residents wondering when a catastrophe like another sinkhole or a natural disaster will arise to knock the wastewater system offline for a longer term The sinkhole also damaged the stormwater system raising the risk of flooding when spring and summer rains arrive Japan has seen an uptick in the frequency and intensity of extreme weather like torrential downpours and typhoons due to climate change municipal storm drains can easily be overwhelmed Low-lying areas are particularly vulnerable and it falls to authorities to maintain the resilience of infrastructure by regularly inspecting systems and carrying out climate risk assessments which enable local governments to effectively invest in the upkeep and upgrading of systems It would be a mistake to see the sinkhole in Yashio as an isolated incident the same factors that led to this collapse threaten sewerage systems throughout the country revisions to Japan’s Sewerage Act mandated that local governments increase inspections of sewer lines at spots susceptible to damage from aging and corrosion While the vast majority of sinkholes are less than a meter deep the scale of disruption posed by larger cave-ins such as in Yashio that account for 2% of incidents cannot be underestimated Japan has some 490,000 kilometers of sewage pipes nationwide as of the end of fiscal 2022 (March 2023) Much of the network was installed during the country’s rapid economic growth extending from the 1950s to the 1970s a period that saw a rapid rise in the standard of living in Japan the ratio of pipelines that are over 50 years old stands at 7% but this is set to increase to 19% in 10 years and will reach 40% in 20 years This state of affairs has been highlighted by a number of recent cases similar to Yashio of large sinkholes caused by ruptured sewer pipes a cave-in on a major highway in the town of Kawajima in Saitama left a hole in the road 1.5 meters across and 3 meters deep into which fell an 80-year-old man on a bicycle a 60-centimeter hole in a sewer pipe laid in 1982 caused a road in Sendai leaving a crater that measured 4.5 meters long In an incident unrelated to sewerage infrastructure a collapse near Hakata Station in Fukuoka in November 2016 drew international attention for the speed of recovery work with an army of cement truck and workers filling the 15-meter-deep chasm in a week in contrast to the plodding effort in Yashio owes to the fact that the collapse occurred at 5:00 am when the streets were empty as well as readily available construction crews If the accident had occurred a few hours later when people were on their way to school or work there would almost certainly have been one or more victims which would have severely hampered the speed of the repair work Although faced with a mounting need to inspect and upgrade aging sewerage infrastructure municipalities are falling further and further behind in their upkeep The number of workers at wastewater treatment facilities throughout Japan has steadily declined as the expansion of sewerage infrastructure has leveled off and cities streamlined services but by 2021 this figure had fallen to 26,900 the frequency of inspections and monitoring has dropped off with crews managing to check pipes once every five years at the most MLIT has encouraged cities to outsource some of the work to private companies but the policy has done little to alleviate the situation as contractors are grappling with the same shortage of qualified technicians as municipalities Saitama governor Ōno Motohiro (center) heads a meeting of a panel studying the cause of the sinkhole in Yashio in the prefectural capital Saitama on January 31 Climbing costs are also adding to the burden of operating wastewater treatment systems Revenue from sewage services has been on a steady downward slide as the Japanese population declines and the public has increasingly adopted water-saving measures When the time comes to replace aging infrastructure cities all too often lack the money for projects Local governments are required to fund wastewater treatment services through user fees but many are in fact reliant on central government subsidies to finance systems Even those that are in the black receive some 28% of their income and 17% of the money for capital expenditures from subsidies and other outside sources The application process for receiving these funds is laborious and time consuming placing municipal wastewater management on unstable financial footing sewerage systems are more expensive to operate and maintain than public water service They utilize larger pipes that are buried deeper underground with the costs of replacing or fixing sections running three to four times higher than for waterworks Pumps are also needed to keep the effluent moving through the network Usage fees are typically too low to cover operating expenses and unless these are brought in line with operating costs municipal governments will continue to struggle to adequately maintain systems potentially impacting the level of public services and the quality of life of citizens Japan is working hard to bolster its arsenal of monitoring tools by focusing on stepping up the frequency and efficiency of inspections Examples of this are the use of special camera systems to scan the interior of manholes and utilization of robots to inspect the inside of pipes enabling crews to quickly and easily survey conditions from the surface There are also efforts to increase the adoption of advanced technologies and machine learning to detect deteriorating or damaged stretches of pipe Taking advantage of these tools to regularly monitor conditions inside sewer pipes enables operators of wastewater systems to easily and accurately identify vulnerable areas workers can analyze past data to pinpoint locations prone to corrosion and take steps before they become an issue There are also efforts to introduce new and better techniques to rehabilitate old which is less time-consuming and more cost-effective than replacement a method of inflating and hardening a specially treated tube inside an existing conduit to restore it to near-new conditions and spiral relining that involves inserting a continuous rigid polyvinyl chloride strip that is wound into a spiral shape to form a new pipe inside the old one These methods do not involve digging or excavating although they are somewhat limited in their use as they cannot be applied to pipelines that are severely deteriorated and their lifespan is only around 10 years Sewage pipeline construction Even with the development of new technologies the national government needs to take the lead on protecting Japan’s aging wastewater infrastructure rather than leaving it solely to municipalities the government brought together experts to formulate a new plan for strengthening the national land infrastructure during which it indicated that repairing and rebuilding the nation’s water and sewer pipelines would be a priority Local governments have called for greater access to and flexibility of subsidies while voicing concerns that even with financial support labor shortages hamper their ability to build new pipelines and repair existing ones This latter point lacks a quick and easy solution making it unlikely that the current pace of projects will increase in the foreseeable future It is crucial that the national and local governments work together to shore up the finances of sewage treatment systems and promote the training of new wastewater technicians and other specialized personnel and efforts must also be made to raise public awareness and understanding of the importance of sewerage infrastructure Banner photo: An overhead view of workers in Yashio as they attempt to reach the truck driver trapped in the sinkhole The greatest collection of martial arts superstars on planet Earth will descend upon Saitama Super Arena when ONE Championship returns to Japan with ONE 172 on Sunday One of the featured bouts of the evening is a flyweight kickboxing super-fight between generational talents Former longtime ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon and three-division K-1 Champion Takeru Segawa have been calling each other out for years and the matchup was scheduled in early 2024 until an injury threw a wrench into the plan But with both combat sports icons now healthy they will finally meet in the ring for a dream fight that promises to deliver fireworks in a rematch for the vacant ONE Flyweight MMA World Title former longtime divisional king and #1-ranked contender Adriano Moraes goes head-to-head with the #2-ranked contender and World Title bouts scheduled for the card ONE 172 promises to be an event for the ages Mark your calendar, put a reminder in your phone, grab your tickets, and make sure you don’t miss ONE 172 live on March 23, 2025! View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ONE Championship (@onechampionship) Corporate Information : Top Technology : Top Design : Top Sustainability : Top Investor Relations : Top Accelerating Adoption of Metal Additive Manufacturing TOKYO - Nikon Corporation (Nikon) is pleased to announce the opening of its Nikon AM Technology Center Japan in Gyoda which will be unveiled to invited guests at a Grand Opening ceremony on February 28 This facility marks another milestone in the Nikon Advanced Manufacturing plan to revolutionize manufacturing while enabling and scaling the industrial base using cutting-edge solutions from Nikon This month’s launch of the Nikon AM Technology Center Japan follows the July 2024 opening of the premier Nikon AM Technology Center in Long Beach the facility in Japan brings together the Nikon AM portfolio and consolidates a diverse and specialized team dedicated to driving success for Nikon and its clients and partners Nikon AM Technology Center Japan is similarly equipped with the industry-leading ultra-large format NXG XII 600 laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF*1) system from Nikon SLM Solutions AG The NXG series utilizes 12 lasers with a build platform that allows printing parts up to a maximum of 1.5m and will be pivotal in enabling the most demanding AM applications Nikon AM Technology Center Japan will also feature Nikon organically developed high-precision directed energy deposition (DED*2) systems including the Lasermeister LM300A for repair and sustainment applications for a variety of industries and other critical solutions to catalyze metal AM technology development and processing for customers in Japan and Asia The opening of this facility furthers Nikon’s Vision 2030 strategy to be a key technology solutions company in a global society where humans and machines co-create seamlessly with Digital Manufacturing being a pillar of growth in this plan The information is current as of the date of publication Return to the top of the page SAITAMA — A body believed to be the driver of a truck that fell into a sinkhole in Yashio in January was recovered from a nearby sewer pipe Friday morning according to the Saitama prefectural government SAITAMA — A body believed to be that of the driver of a truck that fell into a sinkhole in Yashio The Saitama prefectural police are working to identify the body thought to be that of a 74-year-old man who was driving the truck that plunged into the sinkhole when it formed on a prefectural road on Jan Firefighters and others in protective gear and carrying oxygen tanks entered the 4.75-meter-diameter sewer pipe at around 4:20 a.m The body was removed from the driver’s cab and transported to the Soka Police Station shortly after 8 a.m Although the back of the truck was recovered shortly after the cave-in accident the driver’s cab fell deeper into the sewer pipe 10 meters underground The driver’s cab was confirmed to be about 30 meters downstream from the accident site but search efforts had been suspended due to soft ground and sewage flowing into the pipe The family of the driver released a statement through the prefectural police on Friday “We still cannot believe or accept that our beloved father is no longer with us.” The prefectural government plans to recover the driver’s cab and begin restoration work at the site It is expected to take five to seven years to complete the work Saitama Inu is an ERC-20 token on Ethereum that trended as one of the top ‘dog’ meme coins Saitama Inu was one of the most hyped cryptocurrencies in 2021 however is now working on reviving the project to its former glory Will Saitama reach a $7 billion market cap again Saitama’s price had dropped by 24.26% in 24 hours The cryptocurrency has a market capitalization of $817.98 million and a trading volume of $35.23K Investors remain unfazed by Saitama’s volatility The coin broke the $0.001 resistance this month The attached Tradingview chart shows that Saitachain has been correcting from a recent high of $0.001 with waning volatility suggesting bearish catalysts could send the price lower The bulls have established a strong buy wall at the $0.000595 mark which is evident by the positive momentum shown by the MACD indicator The combination of technical indicators and chart analysis suggests that Saitama is bearish with support at $0.000595 it trades at its lowest range for the year so there is plenty of room for price movement to the upside Explore Cryptopolitan’s price prediction to learn about the coin’s trajectory from 2025 to 2031 Saitama is trading at its lowest this year; the crypto market capitalization has also dropped significantly The drop in Saitama value could be attributed to the general market sentiment The Saitama blockchain registered high activity This factor suggests a recovery when market sentiment changes According to the Cryptopolitan price prediction Saitama will cross the $0.005 mark in 2028 with a maximum price of $0.01039 for the year It remains highly unlikely that Saitama will cross the $0.1 mark before 2031 According to Cryptopolitan price predictions Saitama will trade higher in years to come factors like market crashes or difficult regulations could invalidate this bullish theory is on a mission to prove that communities are stronger than developers the developers betrayed the community through a series of fraudulent actions so severe that they caught the FBI’s attention 🐺 Saitama Inu's Comeback Story 🐺Far too often we see developers launch projects with grand promises only to betray their communities in pursuit of personal profit and deception have become unfortunate hallmarks of many failed crypto projects Saitama will trade between $0.00072 and 0.0012 The Saitama Inu price prediction for 2025 is a high of $0.0017 It will reach a minimum price of $0.0007 and an average price of $0.00084 The Saitama price forecast shows it will range between $0.0019 and $0.0023 Saitama price prediction climbs even higher into 2027 Our Saitama Inu price prediction indicates a further acceleration in the price It will trade between $0.0043 and $0.0052 and have an average of $0.0044 According to the Saitama coin price prediction for 2029 the price of Saitama will range from a minimum of $0.0043 to a maximum of $0.0075 According to the Saitama price prediction for 2030 the Saitama price will range from $0.0089 to $0.0103 The Saitama price prediction for 2031 is a high of $0.0159 It will reach a minimum price of $0.0135 and an average price of $0.0139 Our predictions show that Saitama Inu will achieve a high level of $0.0017 in 2025 Note the predictions are not investment advice Seek independent consultation or do your own research and trading strategies are provided by the third-party provider and the point of view is based on the independent assessment and judgement of the analyst without considering the investment objectives and financial situation of the investors Risk Warning: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage The vast majority of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money Please refer to our Risk Disclosure Statement and Terms & Conditions so as to have a better understanding over the risks involved before you start trading Mitrade is the brand name of Mitrade EU Limited (the “Company”) an investment firm authorised and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission with license number 438/23 and situated at Spyrou Kyprianou 79 The content of this website is not intended for residents of Belgium the United States or any person in any country outside the EEA or a jurisdiction where its distribution or use would contravene with local laws and regulations Honda has been actively working to solve environmental issues since the 1960s and is continuously promoting activities to realize the “joy and freedom of mobility” and a “rich and sustainable society.” In its efforts to achieve nature-positive coexistence with nature Honda identified the conservation of biodiversity as one of its top priorities and is working not only to avoid or minimize impacts on nature Mobility Resort Motegi in Tochigi Prefecture became the first Honda site to be certified as an OECM (Other effective area-based conservation measures) biodiversity conservation area under the “30 by 30 Alliance for Biodiversity* established under the initiative of the Ministry of the Environment approximately 70% is forest that has not been developed and has been left as a nature symbiosis site which is home to approximately 5,800 species of wildlife including rare species *Collaboration among organizations that support the “30 by 30” target which aims to effectively conserve at least 30% of the land and sea as healthy ecosystems by 2030 Through over 60 years of experience in environmental conservation activities Honda successfully gained certification of its Saitama Factory Automobile Plant (Yorii Plant) as an OECM biodiversity conservation area Honda recognizes that its corporate activities may have an impact on biodiversity and has been focusing on conservation and restoration activities I am delighted that the Yorii Plant’s conservation activities to date have been certified as an OECM site Through discussions with Yorii Plant members and trial and error we were able to gain certification in recognition of our community-wide efforts to restore the devastated biotope and conduct rice planting and harvesting activities in cooperation with local residents The Yorii Plant is the base plant for the production of completed automobiles and is preparing to become Honda’s first carbon-neutral plant in its March 2026 term As part of its efforts to conserve biodiversity Honda preserved approximately 30% of the site as biodiversity-friendly green space in order to reduce the impact on the local ecosystem Honda is also working to maintain the Satoyama (natural woodland) environment which is important for preserving the local ecosystem by systematically pruning and cutting down the originally existing quercus serrata and sawtooth oak forests and cedar and cypress plantations The Yorii Plant is surrounded by a rich natural environment We are communicating with local residents and working together with them to preserve the Satoyama environment We will continue to work on both business activities and coexistence with nature and we will continue our activities so that Honda can be a company that the local community want to exist in the community As part of its efforts to coexist with nature Honda is also focusing on creating a comfortable living environment for the various wildlife that inhabits the premises’ biotope so we leave many tall plants to protect them from light jay rats prefer medium-stemmed grassland that is not too tall but instead use lawn mowers and other weeding methods to minimize the impact on living creatures rare and endangered species of plants and animals live on the site as a result of exterminating non-native species Fireflies and other creatures have now become rare throughout Japan I personally want to maintain a rich natural environment where these creatures can live I believe it is important to pass this on to the next generation and I am promoting activities to achieve this goal Honda holds events not only for Saitama Factory employees to experience rice planting and harvesting using the paddy biotope to share and promote the function and purpose of the biotope conservation of diverse plants and animals and its management policy to the local community Honda is also working to raise awareness and promote biodiversity We are trying to make it possible for not only Yorii Plant employees and their families but also local residents and their children to participate in the activities while having fun We try to make the events an opportunity to deepen exchanges with local residents while working together with them from nature to continue its business and corporate activities Honda believes that it must return these benefits to nature and will continue in its efforts to preserve and restore the natural environment Honda will continue to engage in activities to pass on an enriched lifestyle to the next generation aiming to create a society of tomorrow with dreams: abundant nature a future where children can freely fulfill their dreams and a society where everyone can live comfortably Diners in Japan looking to savor the flavors of the historic Silk Road need look only as far as southern Saitama Just a short car ride west from Kita Urawa Station a quiet eatery serving up flavors and aromas of Uyghur cooking from the crossroads of Central and East Asia whose name means “hope” in the Uyghur language serves as a window into a fascinating and diverse culture The Uyghurs are a primarily Muslim population from inner Asia mainly living today in Xinjiang in northwestern China there were some 11.6 million Uyghurs living in the autonomous region The shop’s owners are a Uyghur couple the pair have dedicated themselves to sharing their native culture and foods with their adopted home The interior of the restaurant reflects this wrapping visitors in a distinctly Central Asian vibe which features Uyghur dishes and other regional halal fare Eli arrives at Murat around 7:00 each the morning to start the day’s prep he was hard at work making different varieties of Uyghur bread this naan flatbread is the cornerstone of the Uyghur table Eli Huxur puts the finishing touches on Uyghur naan before baking its resemblance to freshly pounded rice cake making my mouth water adding toppings and designs as he goes along He is helped by two male Uzbekistani employees with the trio bantering in the Uyghur tongue “We all speak similar Turkic languages so communicating isn’t a problem,” Eli asserts warmly Soaking in the restaurant’s atmosphere the close cultural ties of Uyghurs and other ethnic groups in Central Asia is evident Take for instance the savory pilaf-like polo made with lamb which is one of the shop’s most popular menu items Renditions of the cuisine are also found next door in Uzbekistan where it is known as plov and holds the status of national dish consisting of piping hot chai served alongside naan slathered with fig or apricot jam Chai is common across the region from Turkey to India and beyond but in a departure from varieties sweetened with sugar the Uyghur version is flavored with a dash of salt A plate of polo a dish found in various forms across Central Asia As I sit talking with Eli, a long-time Japanese friend of his pops his head in to say hello, and soon the two are affectionately chatting about the early years of their relationship. “I first met Eli when he came into the Japanese restaurant I was running at the time,” recounts the friend. “From there we started hanging out at a local izakaya He was fresh off the boat and hardly spoke a word of the language.” Eli sheepishly acknowledges his early struggles with Japanese asserting that he had enrolled in a language school in an attempt to learn or ‘cheers,’ but not much else Eli sees his visitor off with a gift of freshly baked naan and watermelon a combination the friend insists is “delicious beyond description.” Baking naan fills the restaurant with an enticing aroma and Eli accompanies his staff to prayers at a nearby mosque he describes for me his arrival in Japan in 1997 as a determined 27-year-old “I wanted to become someone of note,” he declares adding that his father had served as a regional governor and his older sister was a university professor “I’d worked as an accountant at a state-run business but having only graduated from technical college I felt I needed to earn a bachelor’s or even master’s degree if I had any hope of raising my social status.” Following his sister he arrived in the country bent on laying the groundwork necessary to become a member of the Uyghur elite once he returned home Living in Japan brought an endless supply of surprises He was awed by the automatic ticket gates at train stations and vending machines on street corners which made Japan seem leaps and bounds ahead technologically Even the public toilets at parks were like nothing he had ever seen—the first one he encountered he mistook for a villa “I was blown over by the Japanese propensity for detail.” The way of life also presented startling differences to his own native culture “There isn’t a reliance on kin bonds or payoffs to be successful,” he says “Even children of wealthy families have to get by on their own merits.” Eli eventually completed his language studies and was accepted to a Japanese university he landed a job with an automotive parts maker that was looking to open a branch in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Zone the firm’s new business plan ran into problems “The CEO didn’t want me to go,” he says “But I didn’t see a future there.” His search for a new career path led him to the food industry “I had worked at a family friend’s restaurant back home so I set about opening my own shop.” The decision to obtain a chef’s license and open his own restaurant was the culmination of a gradual shift in Eli’s life trajectory and one that I suspect is deeply intwined with the political situation in his homeland I have repeatedly probed him on this point but he has steadfastly remained tight lipped about his change of heart Eli has carved out a niche for Silk Road Murat among local residents and overseas transplants alike the eatery draws a diverse flow of customers that includes Uyghur natives The clientele is predominantly local and Japanese Eli’s wife Aytursun says that savoring the wide array of ethnic cuisines available in Japan has helped foster for her a new appreciation for her native Uyghur cooking “Spices factor large in the culinary cultures of many predominantly Muslim nations,” she explains which many Japanese customers find pleasantly surprising.” Working at the restaurant and raising their two children in Japan the husband-and-wife- team have entrenched themselves in the local community Aytursun regularly attends neighborhood gatherings and has been active in sharing the food and customs of her native land Aytursun Tohti holds cooking events and other gatherings introducing Uyghur culture One of her favorite Uyghur foods to introduce is laghman a savory combination of hand-pulled noodles with its soup flavored with garlic and ginger savoring the rich flavor of the ingredients and in no time the warm broth and spices have me warm down to my toes Aytursun considers it the duty of Uyghurs like herself who are living abroad to be ambassadors for their homeland “Many first-time customers ask if Uyghur is a type of cooking,” she declares with a hint of dismay “I want to teach the world about who we are.” Laghman is one of the best-known dishes of Uyghur cuisine building a business and raising a family here “The shop has sustained us,” he reflects “which is all I ever hoped for it to do.” He insists that he has no plans to pass the reins to his children and make the most of their own lives.” He says that he is looking forward to relaxing in his old age particularly relishing the idea of spending long hours soaking in hot spring baths his homeland is never far from his thoughts “I might decide to return someday,” he declares no one can say what the future holds.” The exterior of Silk Road Murat and Aytursun Tohti outside their restaurant Silk Road Murat A body believed to be an elderly woman was discovered on Friday inside a metal drum at a recycling company in the city of Yoshikawa The discovery was made after an employee called the police around 3:50 p.m to report what appeared to be a human foot visible in the drum.googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1499653692894-0'); }); According to the Saitama Prefectural Police the drum — measuring approximately 90 cm deep and 60 cm in diameter — had been collected by the recycling company the previous day from a storage rental facility in the city of Tokorozawa The drum is reported to have been stored there since at least February The recycling company had received a disposal request from the facility due to unpaid storage fees The body appears to have been dead for some time and was found clothed and wrapped in a blue tarp An autopsy revealed no noticeable external injuries The police are treating the case as abandonment of a corpse and are working to identify the body and cause of death Please upgrade to a more modern version to fully experience JapanToday site and for security reasons Join the leading Asian tourist attraction to assist our diverse range of customers Very sad for the truck driver and his family You can watch the truck driver getting swallowed into the sinkhole here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-ZaYSfSodg still working while no doubt some of his peers were enjoying retirement Wishing the best for the workers at the site Can someone explain please what happened to the truck driver why cannot be found or why wasn't he in the truck cabin Are there any hypothesis on what might happened to him The truck driver is deceased but it must be stressful to his family that his body has not been recovered ""The hole was initially around five meters in diameter but combined with a larger cavity that opened during the rescue operation on Tuesday night."" This soul could have been rescued and saved within the first 12 to 18 hours if this entire medium or small sized truck was hooked and pulled or even air lifted and before the cabin got filled with mud and buried Cables could have been attached to the truck from as far and safe as possible to stop it from sinking then rescuers could have been lowered from the air or by a hoist if possible to free the man Cables could have been attached to the truck from as far and safe as possible to stop it from sinking then rescuers could have been lowered from the air or by a hoist if possible to free the man It is extremely dangerous for the personnel trying to proceed with the rescue operation as equipment that is too heavy would also be at risk of sinking as the ground in the surrounding area is just as fragile as glass basically What's the first thing rescuers do when something is sinking regardless they get cables or ropes attached to the object My deepest condolences to the gentleman's family and coworkers Still locals whining this morning on breakfast TV that they have difficulty getting their clothes washed It’s so nice to see people here overflowing with genuine compassion The cab with the driver inside broke off the truck frame as it was being lifted out It may have been that the drivers cab was already partially buried by dirt when the rest of the truck was lifted out The hole is unstable and dirt is sliding in there all the time Trying my hardest to tell you that I stated "as far and safe as possible" look at the photo there are heavy equipment in the area so it could have been done with CABLES The workers have to be lowered into the hole by cherry pickers or cranes Walking in causes more ground to slide in and bury the truck and is unsafe for the rescue workers two of whom were already injured trying to get to the truck cab where the driver is The possibility of the rescuers being buried was very real Perhaps we should be grateful that the infrastructure that underpins our lives fails so rarely rescuers would need to go down there and work there Are you suggesting that more people should have been sacrificed Ironic that they’re also being told not to evacuate their bowels due to the water problem ”The growing hole could be the result of corroded sewerage pipes” How much more of this infrastructure is going to fail into another sinkhole endangering more people Trenchless technology can extend the service life of these underground facilities Public Works should have inspection records to identify the conditions My condolences to the family of the man left behind It’s likely the sewage pipe or other water source has been leaking for some time and created the sinkhole even with regular cctv inspection of the pipes There’s little that can be achieved until the unstable ground is cleared It maybe that the only safe way to stabilise the ground is to divert the flow of water to new pipe work and fill the hole with concrete and grout It’s a big hole and might even need piling It’s tragic for the truck driver but the hole has got so big the authorities must be looking to secure the surrounding properties now there are also rehab lining technologies for sewers and months of suspensions whilst the works are performed But both of our comments are retrospective in this case application of such solutions cost more than the original construction (even when inflation adjusted) set up a meeting with your local service providers We did a study of this matter for our city and trenchless repair was the only solution our city could even begin to afford And this ignores the indirect costs to the community and local businesses from trenching streets blocking driveways and disrupting traffic that inherent in old fashioned methods of sewer repair Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts A mix of what's trending on our other sites The sinkholes are believed to be due to a broken pipe under the road The ground between the two sinkholes that had already opened in a prefectural road in Yashio collapsed early on Thursday morning to make an even larger hole YASHIO – the space between the two sinkholes that had already opened in a prefectural road in Yashio collapsed early on Thursday morning and expanded into an even larger hole It is estimated to be more than 20 meters in diameter the driver of a truck that fell in the hole but firefighters and others were preparing to renew their efforts The prefectural government has called on residents of 12 cities and towns in the eastern part of the prefecture through their respective local governments to refrain from washing clothes and taking baths About 1.2 million people are subject to the notice The prefectural government has been sucking up the sewage and discharging it into another sewer pipe they also began emergency discharge from a pumping station in Kasukabe The damaged sewer pipe was 4.75 meters in diameter and made of concrete The service life of concrete is usually 50 years Visual inspections are conducted once every five years determined that “no immediate repairs [were] required” for the pipe that may have caused this incident The prefecture believes that hydrogen sulfide was the cause Sewage flowing through sewer pipes contains organic matter such as excrement and kitchen waste bacterial activity produces hydrogen sulfide from organic matter,” said Hiroaki Morita a professor at Nihon University’s Civil Engineering Department Morita also said that hydrogen sulfide changes into sulfuric acid when it comes into contact with air in the pipes and corrodes the concrete Road subsidence frequently occurs throughout Japan for which the presence of underground cavities is one cause occur on national and municipal roads nationwide every year About 40% of these were caused by broken gutters and storm drains sewer line damage was the most common cause at 30% Japanese rescuers suspend search for truck driver who plunged into sinkhole days ago 20m-wide sinkhole in Japan: 1.2 million asked to refrain from doing laundry and taking baths The metal mass found inside an underground sewer pipe near the site of a sinkhole in Saitama Prefecture has been identified as the cab of a truck that plunged into the hole created by the incident in late January A human-like figure is visible inside the cab and it could be the 74-year-old driver of the truck according to the officials.googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1499653692894-0'); }); Motohiro Ono announced the prefecture's decision to apply the disaster relief law to the city of Yashio the prefecture's request for about 1.2 million residents of 12 municipalities to cooperate in reducing wastewater ended at noon Wednesday In the incident that occurred at around 9:50 a.m a part of an intersection in Yashio collapsed causing the truck to plunge into the sinkhole The loading platform of the vehicle was later recovered a white metal mass was found in the sewer pipe during a drone survey The company that owns the truck identified through the footage the metal object as a part of the vehicle Police and others will try to examine the inside of the cab as there is a possibility that the driver may be trapped there To reduce the amount of sewage in the pipe in question the prefectural government will shortly start the construction of a bypass pipe It is forecast to be completed in three months Ground improvement work is under way in areas around the sinkhole Ono said that residents staying at evacuation facilities will likely be able to return to their homes in several weeks It has been one month since a sinkhole appeared at the intersection of a prefectural road in Yashio A passing truck fell into the hole when it appeared and the 74-year-old driver has still not been found Saitama created a committee comprising experts to investigate the cause of the sinkhole and create a plan for restoration work but with efforts to find the driver expected to take about three months there is no concrete timeline in place on when such work can begin.googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1499653692894-0'); }); 28 when the central part of an intersection collapsed As part of the search for the truck driver who fell in the prefecture sent a drone into a sewage pipe in the sinkhole Please log in and check your service registration status.To cancel your subscription 1) === '|') document.write("&#"+unescape(l[i].substring(1))+";");else document.write(unescape(l[i]));}