A firefighter trying to extinguish the fire at a pileup in Minakami, Gunma Prefecture, on Friday night. - Yomiuri Shimbun/The Japan News
MAEBASHI: A woman was killed, and 26 others were injured in a pileup involving more than 50 cars on the Kan-Etsu Expressway in Minakami, Gunma Prefecture, on Friday (Dec 26) night.
The expressway has been closed between the Yuzawa Interchange in Yuzawa, Niigata Prefecture, and the Tsukiyono Interchange in Minakami, Gunma Prefecture, due to the accident.
According to local police, a passerby called at about 7:30pm on Friday to report a car accident on the northbound route of the Kan-Etsu Expressway near the Minakami Interchange.
Police reported that at least 16 cars burned in the pileup, killing a 77-year-old woman from Chofu, Tokyo and injuring 26, including five who sustained serious injuries. At the time of the accident, the road was covered with snow. - The Japan News/ANN
