THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
October 9, 2023 at 17:59 JST
Smoke is seen near a door of the Hayabusa No. 52 train on the Tohoku Shinkansen Line at JR Sendai Station on Oct. 9. (Provided by a source)
SENDAI—An apparent chemical leak on the Tohoku Shinkansen Line injured six passengers, including a child, on Oct. 9, but none of them were reported in serious condition.
A call made to the 119 emergency phone number around noon said a child was injured when he touched what looked like a leaked chemical on the Hayabusa No. 52 bullet train running from Shin-Aomori to Tokyo.
A man in his 20s and a woman in her 30s said they became sick after inhaling odorous fumes, according to the Sendai city fire department.
A 5-year-old boy, a man in his 30s, a man in his 40s, and a woman in her 40s complained of burn-like symptoms.
According to East Japan Railway Co. (JR East), a passenger aboard the Hayabusa No. 52 pressed an emergency call button around 11:55 a.m. when the train was about to stop at Sendai Station.
A crew member contacted the Shinkansen control headquarters, which reported the incident to 119.
A woman in her 30s who was in the No. 6 car said she saw a liquid spreading on the floor after a stranger woke her up and told her to evacuate.
Train crew blocked the door leading to the No. 7 car. The woman said she saw what appeared to be smoke in the No. 7 car through a glass portion of the door.
“It smelled like cigarette smoke, something burning,” she said. “It had a faint pungent odor.”
She also heard a woman shouting from the direction of the No. 7 car that a child had suffered a burn.
According to a man who was waiting on a platform at Sendai Station, a station attendant shouted, “Smoke from the No. 7 car,” after the Hayabusa No. 52 stopped there.
When the man approached the No. 7 car, he said he saw white smoke coming from a bag near a door.
All passengers were instructed to leave the train, and the Hayabusa No. 52 operation was suspended.
Some Tohoku Shinkansen trains bound for Tokyo were delayed between Morioka and the capital.
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