Body thought to be missing driver in Japan's Saitama sinkhole incident found
What appears to be a human body has been found inside the cabin of a truck swallowed by a massive sinkhole that opened at an intersection in Yashio, north of Tokyo, in January, local authorities said Thursday, adding they believe it is the missing male driver, Kyodo reports.
Firefighters and police plan to enter the sewer pipe in Saitama Prefecture, where the cabin is located, as early as Friday to begin full-scale recovery operations.
A figure resembling a human body was visually confirmed early Thursday during the first entry into the pipe since the incident, conducted to assess water flow and hydrogen sulfide gas levels.
Based on their findings, the prefectural government determined that the risk of further disaster inside the sewer pipe was low enough to proceed with entry.
The sinkhole, which opened on Jan. 28, swallowed the truck of a driver in his 70s and eventually expanded to about 40 meters wide and 15 meters deep. The truck's cabin was swept roughly 30 meters downstream, according to the prefectural government.
The search was suspended on Feb. 9 due to the risk of further collapse, with priority given to stabilizing the sewer. On April 24, the prefecture completed bypass work to divert a large volume of sewage water.
Authorities plan to use a sloped access route built from the sinkhole to the sewer pipe to reach the truck cabin. A separate vertical shaft has been prepared to lift the cabin using heavy machinery.
"The entire prefecture has been working together to enable rescue as soon as possible. We will continue our efforts to ensure access to the driver's cabin," Saitama Gov. Motohiro Ono said at a disaster response meeting Thursday.
