Missing truck cabin located in sewer pipe near Saitama sinkhole

Saitama Gov Motohiro Ono told reporters that rescuers will attempt to remove the truck cabin after installing a temporary bypass pipe, but the process could take about three months.

Take your sweet old time.

The first 2 hours were the most critical and precious moments to save the driver life and were missed because there were NO HEROS around and lack of preparations for such events.

All What was needed is a cable / cables hocked to the truck to lock it in place and prevent it from sinking further at first, then rescuers could have been safely lowered by a Helicopter or a large crane from a Safe Distance to free the man from the cabin.

This is very sad news indeed. I cannot imagine what is in his family's hearts knowing that his body is still there and cannot be retrieved for a very long time due to conditions.

quercetum

Saitama Gov Motohiro Ono told reporters that rescuers will attempt to remove the truck cabin after installing a temporary bypass pipe, but the process could take about three months.

Take your sweet old time.

Can you do it any faster? If yes give them a call.

WoodyLee

The first 2 hours were the most critical and precious moments to save the driver life and were missed because there were NO HEROS around and lack of preparations for such events.

All What was needed is a cable / cables hocked to the truck to lock it in place and prevent it from sinking further at first

The cab of the truck was completely covered so hooking a cable on the the frame at the rear would have been pointless as the forces will have ripped the cab of the chassis , which it did anyway. I am quite confident the emergency services did everything they could have to save this guy without the further loss of life.

I thought this sinkhole is a little accident but the biggest disaster now.

Take your sweet old time.

Wow, talk about "instant" gratification syndrome!

That poor guy. Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

It would not have happened if they had not separated the truck from its cab.

@Alongfortheride

The cab of the truck was completely covered

No, the cab was not completely covered until several hours after the initial accident.

As @WoodyLee stresses above, “The first 2 hours were the most critical and precious moments to save the driver’s life.”

Excerpt below from the New York Times report.

—

The driver was alive immediately after the truck sank into the hole, responding to nearby rescuers, according to the public broadcaster NHK. However, a few hours later, a mudslide inside the hole caused dirt and rubble to fall onto the vehicle, burying it. The man has not responded to subsequent attempts to make contact.

 I am quite confident the emergency services did everything they could have to save this guy without the further loss of life.

Unfortunately just not fast enough. Have to in an emergency mode instead of politely shouting down into the sinkhole,”daijobu desu ka?”

Missing truck cabin located in sewer pipe

That means they located the driver. What a horrible way to go for the poor guy.

WoodyLee

The first 2 hours were the most critical and precious moments to save the driver life and were missed because there were NO HEROS around and lack of preparations for such events.

How exactly do you "prepare" for this particular event? The fire department was on the scene very quickly, but exactly what "preparation" do you have in mind for them?

All What was needed is a cable / cables hocked to the truck to lock it in place and prevent it from sinking further at first, then rescuers could have been safely lowered by a Helicopter or a large crane from a Safe Distance to free the man from the cabin.

You do realize that the walls of the hole collapsed and buried the cabin? And that when they pulled the truck out with cables as you brilliantly suggest, the cabin separated from the truck? There is no "all that was needed" here, good grief.

what "preparation" do you have in mind for them?

Active training scenarios could include quickly (1) Cutting power to a block, (2) Cutting obstructing power lines, (3) Lowering a rescue winchman by helicopter.

Firefighters and coast guard personnel periodically conduct rescue drills and scenarios. These could easily be added.

You do realize that the walls of the hole collapsed and buried the cabin? 

We’re talking about a rescue in those hours before the hole collapsed — before dirt and rubble covered the vehicle and driver.

I'm sure no one foresaw the cab shearing off of the chassis when they initially tried to drag the truck out of the hole. In retrospect, the only thing that may have worked to prevent this was to use a powerful enough industrial electromagnet on a crane, but I don't think the first responders can be blamed for not considering it as an option.

When younger, I was involved with emergency response for 10 years. After every significant event there was a thorough review, critique, and plan for improvement when opportunities were found. No egos or blame game, just here is the situation, actions taken, and the end results. What could we have done better?

I'm sure Japanese first responders do the same. A good follow-up article would be coverage of this activity and the path forward. This man's life is gone, but maybe lessons learned can help save someone in the future.

I'm sure Japanese first responders do the same. A good follow-up article would be coverage of this activity and the path forward. This man's life is gone, but maybe lessons learned can help save someone in the future.

But sadly it seems like too many posters here are just looking to play the blame game. Easy to point fingers when you werent there and had nothing to actually do with the process.

Thoughts condolences for the family.

there were NO HEROS around

Sounds very American haha.

I'm rather confused that every Japanese media outlet keeps saying the driver is missing, not dead. The rescue team is trying to save him, not recover his body. They would say that in three months.

hey, the rescuers are not the ones who caused this problem--it's the poorly maintained sewer pipes running underneath the road. If someone wants to be a "hero", then please identify more such pipes and prevent additional disasters.