Bullet train collides with bear

One of the most interesting news stories from Japan this past week was that of a bullet train colliding with a bear. The reason I find it so interesting is because when I first came to Japan you heard little to nothing about the bears here. But in the last few years, the number of news stories about bears has grown exponentially. And this year it feels like there is at least one story every week.

To me, the news of a bullet train colliding with a bear is jaw dropping. But even more surprising was that it was not the first time this year. In June there was another collision with a bear on the same line. The line services the Yamagata Shinkansen (Bullet) train. The most recent collision took place between the stations of Itaya in Yamagata Prefecture and Niwasaka in Fukushima Prefecture.

Unfortunately, the articles I read about the incident didn't elaborate on the condition of the bear. In other words, I don't know if it survived or was rescued or took off all on its own. Thankfully, no passengers or staff were injured in the train. Service was temporarily suspended, but in true Japanese fashion, things were back up running smoothly within a couple of hours.