Four railway workers clearing weeds on a track at Shin-Kanuma Station in Tochigi Prefecture were struck and killed by a limited express train on Thursday morning.
The collision took place at approximately 10:45 a.m. on August 20, 2026, at Shin-Kanuma Station on the Tobu Nikko Line in Tochigi Prefecture, north of Tokyo. A six-car Spacia X2 limited-express train, operating from Tobu Nikko Station and bound for Tobu Asakusa Station in Tokyo, struck four men who were engaged in weed-control work near the tracks beneath the station platform.
Emergency services rushed to the scene following an emergency call placed at around 10:45 a.m., according to fire authorities and police. The four victims were transported to a local hospital, where they were subsequently pronounced dead.
Victims Identified by Tochigi Prefectural Police
The Tochigi Prefectural Police identified the four men who died in the collision as Kazuyoshi Ishikawa, 67, and Toshihiko Watanabe, 65, both residents of Utsunomiya, alongside Shigenobu Oke, 53, and Kazunari Sato, 54, both from Nikko. The four men, consisting of three workers and a supervisor, worked for a subcontractor and were part of a larger 10-employee team carrying out herbicide and weeding operations at the station.
Six other individuals stationed at the work site escaped injury. That unharmed group included two additional workers, three people assigned to lookout duties, and an on-site supervisor, according to railway officials. Approximately 50 passengers aboard the limited express train also sustained no injuries during the sudden emergency stop.
Safety Protocols and Lookout System Under Investigation
Investigators are examining whether established safety procedures were properly followed leading up to the collision. Under standard protocols described by Caliber, track maintenance crews rely on designated lookouts who are stationed to warn workers of incoming trains, wave a warning flag to the driver, and wait for the train horn as an acknowledgment before workers evacuate.
Initial statements from the railway operator noted that a lookout had been deployed about 80 meters away, but investigators found that another lookout positioned roughly 300 meters away was not in a position to communicate effectively with other team members. A passenger aboard the train recounted hearing a strange noise immediately before the train engaged its emergency brakes, leaving passengers waiting inside carriages while crew members investigated.
“We are currently investigating why the accident occurred despite this.”
Tobu Railway representative, via BBC and Times of India
Tobu Railway Issues Apology and Services Resume
In a press conference held in Tokyo on Thursday afternoon, railway executives addressed the tragedy and offered a public apology to the families affected by the crash.
“We deeply apologize to the bereaved families. We will thoroughly implement measures to prevent a recurrence so that such a serious accident never happens again.”
Takao Suzuki, head of Tobu’s railway business division
The Japan Transport Safety Board dispatched three railway accident investigators to examine the site at Shin-Kanuma Station. Train operations along the Tobu Nikko Line between Shin-Tochigi and Shimo-Imaichi stations were temporarily suspended following the crash, affecting roughly 2,600 passengers before regular service resumed at 3:22 p.m. the same day.
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