By AYAMI KO/ Staff Writer
March 19, 2025 at 14:03 JST
Wide areas of the Kanto and Chugoku regions were blanketed with snow on the morning of March 19 due to a cold air mass and a strong low-pressure system passing Honshu.
Even in the heart of Tokyo, the snowfall affected traffic during the morning commute. As of 10 a.m. on March 19, 1 centimeter of accumulated snow had been confirmed.
The Japan Meteorological Agency is calling for caution due to icy roads and traffic disruptions.
Unstable weather conditions are expected to continue through the morning of March 19 and people are advised to be aware of rain, snow and possible thunderstorms.
According to the JMA’s announcement, 188 cm of snow had fallen in Minakami, Gunma Prefecture, by 9 a.m.; 157 cm in Nozawaonsen, Nagano Prefecture; 47 cm in Nikko, Tochigi Prefecture; 193 cm in Daisen, Tottori Prefecture; and 104 cm in Kita-Hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture.
In Tokyo’s 23 wards 1 cm of snow is expected to fall by 6 a.m. on March 20, while 3 cm are expected in the northern Tama area of Tokyo, 3 cm in the southern Tama area and 5 cm in the western Tama area.
East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) canceled operations of the Chuo Line between Takao Station in Tokyo and Kobuchizawa Station in Yamanashi Prefecture from the first train on March 19 until around noon, due to the expected snowfall.
The company also suspended operations of its limited-express Azusa and Kaiji Chuo Line trains from the evening of March 18 to around the morning of March 19.
Central Nippon Expressway Co. announced that it had closed some sections of the Chuo Expressway and Higashi-Fujigoko Road as of 10 a.m. on March 19 as a precaution.
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People walk at a crosswalk as snow falls in Tokyo’s Suginami Ward on the morning of March 19. (Wataru Sekita)
