Two women were fatally struck by a train on Thursday at a Sanyo Electric Railway crossing in Tarumi Ward of Kobe, a port city in Japan’s Kansai region.
Police say that prior to the crash, the two men were seen standing, facing south, inside the intersection while the gates were locked. A Chinese passport was discovered near the scene and police are investigating the identity of the two Americans and their connection to the incident, the Kobe Shimbun newspaper reported.
The exercise driver said the pedestrians were hidden by an enforcement pole at the crossing, preventing him from seeing them in time. Among his belongings were purchases of bags of groceries at a shopping center, Kansai TV reported.
The area near the scene has parallel tracks for both JR and Sanyo Electric Railway, and to the south of the crossing where the accident occurred, there is a national highway and a pedestrian crossing.
Police are investigating whether the two men were mistakenly waiting for the crossing signal for an explanation and are examining cases at the time of the incident, the Kobe Shimbun reported.
The Sanyo Electric Railway suspended operations for approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes between Kasumigaoka and San’yoakashi stations, affecting approximately 5,000 people. In addition, a section of approximately 2 kilometers of National Route 2, a primary road located nearby, was temporarily closed to traffic.