Kyodo News quoted Japanese police as saying that four passengers, including a baby, suffered burns and injuries when they came into contact with a liquid chemical that was accidentally leaked by another passenger. The incident occurred on the Shinkansen "bullet" high-speed train.
Four passengers suffered burns while two others suffered discomfort after inhaling fumes from a chemical leak on board.
Investigators are working with the owner of the bag containing the chemical, one of the injured. The 40-year-old man works for a geological survey company in Tokyo and police believe the industrial chemical used for his work was stored in a bottle and placed in his carry-on bag but accidentally leaked.
The Sendai Fire Department said it received a call from a passenger on the No. 52 train bound for Tokyo at noon on October 9. The passenger said someone had suffered burns after touching what appeared to be a chemical. The train crew conducted an inspection and found smoke on the train.
East Japan Railway said the train's emergency announcement system was activated at 11:54 a.m. local time, two minutes before the train arrived at Sendai Station in the northeastern prefecture of Miyagi. All passengers were let off at Sendai Station.
Smoke coming from leaking chemical bag
ASAHI SCREENSHOT
In addition to those injured after exposure to the chemical, two others became unwell, possibly due to inhaling fumes from the chemical. However, authorities said no one was in danger.
A passenger at Sendai station said the incident reminded him of the 1995 sarin gas attack in Japan, which killed 14 people and injured more than 6,000. "It was horrible because you could bring anything on the train," the 52-year-old said.
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