Japan trail derailment leaves four dead
(AP)
Updated: 2005-12-26 18:46

Yamagata police official Yasuhiro Sugiu said there had been high wind warnings at the time of the accident. Winds in the area were about 48 mph, Kyodo News agency reported.

JR East executive Masaki Ogata said the driver reported the train tilted to the left after it was buffeted by a gust of wind. "Then the lights went off and he got disoriented," Ogata said.

The train was reportedly traveling as fast as 62 mph just before the accident. Kubota said the speed limit in that area is set at 74 mph, and the train was not required to slow down under the weather conditions at the time.

Japan in recent days has suffered from unusually heavy snowfall, and blizzards have led to the deaths of eight people. But NHK footage showed the wreckage in a rural area with only patches of snow on the ground.

Speed was believed to be a factor in an April 25 train wreck that killed 107 people and injured more than 500 others in Amagasaki, western Japan. That accident was Japan's worst train wreck since 1963.