AKITA (TR) – A bullet train collided with a bear en route to Akita City on Saturday, causing a delay for the some 200 passengers on-board, reports NHK (Sept. 16).
According to East Japan Railway, the Akita Shinkansen was traveling between Akita and Daisen City in Akita Prefecture when it collided with the bear on the tracks at around 11:14 a.m., forcing the bullet train to make an emergency stop.
“[The bear] seemed to be trying to cross the tracks from the left side to the right when the collision happened, and it just took off like that afterward,” the driver operating the train said.
The train proceeded to the next station at a low speed to make a safety check and resumed operations following a 35-minute delay, the railway company said, adding none of the passengers were injured.
