2 dead after man sets self on fire on Japanese bullet train
ODAWARA, Japan — A man set himself on fire on a high-speed bullet train in Japan on Tuesday, killing himself and another passenger as the coach filled with smoke, a fire official said.
The train stopped on the outskirts of Odawara city, about 50 miles west of Tokyo, when a passenger pressed an emergency button after finding someone collapsed on the floor near a restroom at the back of the first car, a transport ministry official said on condition of anonymity, citing department rules.
Crew members rushed to extinguish the fire, said Kengo Sasaoka, a spokesman for Central Japan Railway Co., which operates the bullet train between Tokyo and Osaka.
Public broadcaster NHK quoted a 58-year-old businessman as saying the man walked up and down the aisle a few times before returning with a plastic container that splashed a liquid on the businessman’s shoulder as he walked by.
Bringing hazardous materials on public transportation is prohibited, but there is no way of checking, sid railway analyst Ryozo Kawashima.
The 16-car bullet train, called Shinkansen in Japanese, travels 343 miles between Tokyo and Osaka in 2 hours and 33 minutes.