7 missing in collapse of highway tunnel in Japan
By ELAINE KURTENBACHBy ELAINE KURTENBACH, Associated Press?
?This image taken from the monitoring camera of Central Nippon Expressway's Hachioji branch, Tokyo, shows the fallen roof panels in the Sasago Tunnel, Yamanashi Prefecture, central Japan, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012. At least seven people were feared missing after parts of a tunnel collapsed Sunday on the highway west of Tokyo, trapping vehicles as smoke from a fire inside initially prevented rescuers from approaching. The words at bottom read: Sasago Tunnel (To Tokyo). (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, FRANCE, HONG KONG, JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA
This image taken from the monitoring camera of Central Nippon Expressway's Hachioji branch, Tokyo, shows the fallen roof panels in the Sasago Tunnel, Yamanashi Prefecture, central Japan, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012. At least seven people were feared missing after parts of a tunnel collapsed Sunday on the highway west of Tokyo, trapping vehicles as smoke from a fire inside initially prevented rescuers from approaching. The words at bottom read: Sasago Tunnel (To Tokyo). (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, FRANCE, HONG KONG, JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA
Police officers and firefighters gather at the exit of the Sasago Tunnel on the Chuo Expressway in Otsuki, Yamanashi Prefecture, central Japan, Sunday morning, Dec. 2, 2012. Police said that parts of the tunnel collapsed Sunday morning, trapping an unknown number of vehicles as smoke from a fire inside prevented rescuers from approaching. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, FRANCE, HONG KONG, JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA
Police vehicles are parked at the entrance as smoke billows out of the Sasago Tunnel on the Chuo Expressway in Koshu, Yamanashi Prefecture, central Japan, Sunday morning, Dec. 2, 2012. A part of the tunnel collapsed Sunday morning, possibly involving several vehicles and injuring several people, local media said. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, FRANCE, HONG KONG, JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA
Smoke billows out of the Sasago Tunnel on the Chuo Expressway in Koshu, Yamanashi Prefecture, central Japan, Sunday morning, Dec. 2, 2012. A part of the tunnel collapsed Sunday morning, possibly involving several vehicles and injuring several people, local media said. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, FRANCE, HONG KONG, JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA
Smoke billows out of the Sasago Tunnel on the Chuo Expressway in Koshu, Yamanashi Prefecture, central Japan, Sunday morning, Dec. 2, 2012. A part of the tunnel collapsed Sunday morning, possibly involving several vehicles and injuring several people, local media said. (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, FRANCE, HONG KONG, JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA
TOKYO (AP) ? At least seven people were feared missing and several dead after about 150 concrete panels fell from the roof of a tunnel on the main highway linking Tokyo with central Japan.
Efforts to rescue any survivors trapped inside the tunnel were hindered by heavy smoke after one vehicle caught fire inside the Sasago Tunnel, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) outside Tokyo.
Rescuers also temporarily suspended work because of fears of a further collapse. They were attempting to reach at least several vehicles believed buried in the rubble, including a truck whose driver was trapped inside and had called his company for help.
"I could hear voices of people calling for help, but the fire was just too strong," said a woman interviewed by public broadcaster NHK after she escaped from the tunnel.
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency issued a statement late Sunday saying five people were confirmed to have been in a car that burned inside the tunnel, and at least one other was in a truck. However, officials said they could not confirm the exact number of people believed dead.
Executives for Central Japan Expressway Co. said the company was investigating why the concrete panels had given way. A check of the 4.7-kilometer (3-mile) tunnel's roof in September and October found nothing amiss, they said.
It said two people were confirmed hurt, but the injuries were not severe.
The tunnel, which opened in 1977, is one of many in mountainous Japan. The location of the collapse, about 1.7 kilometers (a mile) inside the tunnel, was complicating rescue efforts, reports said.
Police vehicles, fire trucks and ambulances were massed outside the tunnel's entrance.
Associated PressNews Topics: General news, Tunnel collapses, Structural failures, Accidents and disasters, Fires, Concrete manufacturing, Accidents, Construction material manufacturing, Construction and engineering, Industrial products and services, Industries, Business, Materialsoccupy oakland morgellons disease arik armstead sag awards red carpet torrey pines nhl all star game 2012 pollyanna
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