OSAKA (TR) – Osaka Prefectural Police launched an investigation after the death of a woman who was found bleeding on a barge moored beneath a bridge in Taisho Ward on Wednesday, reports the Asahi Shimbun (July 15).
At approximately 7:30 a.m., a male laborer working nearby contacted emergency services. “There is someone unconscious and bleeding from the head,” the caller reported. “They may have jumped from the bridge.”
Emergency responders arrived at the scene to find the woman collapsed on the deck of the barge. She was rushed to a nearby hospital but was pronounced dead approximately one hour later, police said.
According to the Taisho Police Station, the deceased is believed to be in her 40s to 60s. While she sustained fractures to both legs — injuries consistent with a high fall — investigators also discovered suspicious discoloration on the skin of her neck, raising questions about the circumstances leading up to her death.
The barge was located floating under the Namihaya Bridge, situated about two kilometers southeast of Osakako Station on the Osaka Metro Chuo Line.
Police are currently rushing to identify the woman and have scheduled a judicial autopsy to determine the exact cause of death.
