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More than 130 cars pile up in massive crash during Japan snowstorm

Click to play video: 'Snowstorm causes fatal 134-car pileup on Japanese expressway'
Snowstorm causes fatal 134-car pileup on Japanese expressway
WATCH: At least 134 cars were involved in a series of crashes in Japan on Tuesday when a snowstorm struck a stretch of highway, killing one and a injuring a dozen others in the chaos. The crashes occurred on the Tohoku Expressway in the northern prefecture of Miyagi at around noon, on a stretch of road about a kilometre long, the government said – Jan 19, 2021

At least 134 cars were involved in a series of crashes in Japan on Tuesday, when a snowstorm struck a stretch of highway.

One person was killed and at least a dozen more were hurt in the chaos.

The crashes occurred on the Tohoku Expressway in the northern prefecture of Miyagi at around noon local time, on a stretch of road about 1 kilometre long, the government said.

Authorities had imposed a speed limit of 50 kilometres per hour when heavy snow cut visibility, but that was not enough to prevent disaster.

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Some 200 people were involved in the crashes and 12 of them were sent to hospital, the disaster management agency said.

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Rescue operations were underway, Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told reporters.

Parts of Japan have seen unusually heavy snow in recent weeks.

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