It started with a large vehicle that got stuck in the deepening snow in Japan.
A minor incident grew into a monster snow-covered traffic jam as over 1,000 cars became stranded on a highway that runs between Tokyo and the city of Niigata along the Sea of Japan coast.
The snarl started Wednesday night, local news sources reported.
“The snow was extremely heavy,” one driver informed the public broadcaster NHK. “As time went by, the cars got buried. I was really scared. I’ve eaten all of my food and drinks. Now, to drink water, I have to melt snow I gather in a plastic bottle.”
Heavy snowfall these days, especially in the Niigata and Gunma prefectures, blanketed some areas with over 6 feet of snow. NHK reported that these prefectures have seen seven times more snow compared to what they typically do at this point at this time of year.
The line of cars at one point stretched over 10 miles, officials informed the news agency.
For a time, traffic was stopped in both directions. Lanes bound for Niigata had been cleared by Friday morning, while about 260 vehicles on the Tokyo-bound lanes were still stuck as of 7 p.m. local time Friday.
The East Nippon Expressway said it could be Saturday before all the cars would be cleared.
Japan’s Self-Defense Forces distributed food, water, blankets, and fuel to those stranded in their vehicles, and worked with shovels to budge the vehicles.
The snow has knocked out power to over 10,000 households.
More heavy snow is forecast for the weekend.
