67-vehcile pileup claims two lives in Japan

A massive crash involving 67 vehicles in snowy weather killed two people and injured 26 on an expressway in Japan late on Friday as the country kicked off its end-of-year holiday season.

The Gunma prefectural highway police said on Saturday that the pileup on the Kan-etsu Expressway started with a collision between two trucks in the town of Minakami, about 160 kilometres northwest of Tokyo.

The initial crash blocked parts of the expressway, and cars coming from behind them were unable to brake on the snowy surface.

A fire erupted at the far end of the pileup, spreading to 20 vehicles, some of which were completely burned. The fire was extinguished about seven hours later, police said.

Burnt vehicles are seen after a massive crash on an expressway in Minakami on Saturday. AP

A 77-year-old woman from Tokyo died in a passenger car, and a charred body was later recovered from the driver's seat of a burned-out truck, police said. Out of the 26 injured, five were in serious condition, police said.

A warning about heavy snow was in effect late on Friday, when many Japanese started their year-end and New Year holidays.

Parts of the expressway remained closed for police investigation, removal and cleaning of the wreckage.

Meanwhile, in a separate development, a man was arrested after stabbing eight people and injuring seven others with what was believed to be bleach at a tyre factory in central Japan on Friday, officials said. There was no immediate explanation of his motive.

Eight people were taken to hospitals after being stabbed by the man with a knife at a factory of the tiremaker Yokohama Rubber Co. in the city of Mishima, in the Shizuoka prefecture, west of Tokyo, according to the Fujisan Nanto Fire Department.

The fire department said that five of the people who were stabbed were in serious condition but other details were not available. All were conscious while they were being transported to hospitals, media reports said.

Shizuoka prefectural police said the attacker, a 38-year-old man, was arrested for alleged attempted murder at the factory, but did not give further details.

The attacker is believed to be a former employee at the factory, Kyodo news agency said, quoting investigative sources.

The suspect was carrying a survival knife and wearing what appeared to be a gas mask, the major Japanese newspaper Asahi reported, citing investigators.

Agencies