Police investigate ski resort after avalanche deaths
NASU: Police yesterday inspected a ski resort in Nasu, north of Tokyo, where an avalanche killed seven students and one teacher on a school mountaineering trip, as they possibly look to build a case to lay charges of professional negligence.
Around 15 police officers and rescue workers conducted the on-site investigation at Nasuonsen Family Ski Resort and nearby areas in Tochigi prefecture to see whether those who organized the alpine training despite an avalanche warning can be held responsible.
The avalanche occurred on Monday morning when local high school students and their teachers were undergoing training to learn how to walk through deep snow above the resort’s ski run.
Seven boys, who were all members of a local school’s competitive mountaineering club, and a 29-year-old teacher were killed and 40 others were injured.
They were taking part in a three-day winter climbing camp organized by a Tochigi prefectural high school athletic federation from Saturday.
Given the bad weather and the issuance of an avalanche warning, a plan to go mountain climbing had been canceled and the students were instead engaged in the walking practice.
Shuichi Inose, adviser to the mountaineering club at Otawara High School who was in charge of the training camp, said at a news conference on Wednesday that they were aware of the risk of an avalanche the day before the incident but considered there would be “no problem” so long as they avoided areas where they believed avalanches were likely to occur.
According to the Nasu town government, there is a valley where snow tends to accumulate more near the avalanchehit area, so the ski resort often suspends operation around March when temperature rises in years of heavy snow because of avalanche risk.