TOCHIGI (TR) – Tochigi Prefectural Police are investigating what is believed to have been a suicide after a boy was killed by a train at a crossing in Oyama City on Monday, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Aug. 28).
At around 10:05 p.m., the boy, a second-year high school student, was struck and killed at the crossing, located in the Hanekawa area, by a local JR Utsunomiya Line train bound for Koganei Station.
According to the Oyama Police Station, the boy crossed beyond the crossing gate and laid down on the tracks prior to the arrival of the train. “He entered [the path of the train] from the left side,” the driver was quoted. A bicycle was found in some bushes near the tracks.
The driver and passengers on the train were not hurt in the incident. According to East Japan Railway, the incident caused delays to trains traveling in both directions, inconveniencing about 3,100 commuters.
A ceremony to mark the end of the summer break at the boy’s school was held on Tuesday. After the ceremony, a deputy head teacher vowed to make an inquiry about the boy’s school activities prior to the summer break. “At present, we have not confirmed any social problems,” the teacher said, according to the Yomiuri Shimbun (Aug. 28).
The Tochigi Prefectural Board of Education is planning to launch an inquiry into the incident.
