High School Student Killed in Bus Crash in Northeastern Japan

Gosen, Niigata Pref., May 7 (Jiji Press)--A 17-year-old male high school student was killed in a microbus crash that happened on the Ban-Etsu Expressway in the city of Koriyama, Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Wednesday.

Hiroto Inagaki, from the city of Niigata, the capital of the namesake prefecture bordering Fukushima, was among the passengers of the microbus, which crashed into a guardrail on the expressway's inbound lane near the Bandaiatami Interchange around 7:40 a.m.

According to the Fukushima prefectural police's expressway unit, the guardrail is at a gentle right curve. Inagaki was thrown into the outbound lane and was confirmed dead at the scene. He died due to blood loss.

All others on board were taken to hospital. None of them are in life-threatening condition. The microbus, driven by a 68-year-old man from the city of Tainai in Niigata Prefecture, was carrying 20 members of the soft tennis club at Hokuetsu High School, a private school in the city of Niigata. Following the microbus crash, a truck crashed into the bent guardrail, leaving two people with minor injuries.

A total of 20 people suffered injuries in the crashes.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]