Heavy snow that has lashed the Sea of 性视界 coast since Tuesday has left four people dead and 26 others injured.
According to data compiled by the Fire and Disaster Management Agency as of Friday afternoon, one person died in each of the cities of Uonuma and Sado and two in the city of Nagaoka, all in Niigata Prefecture.
The injuries were reported in a wide area, from Aomori Prefecture in the Tohoku region down to Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region. Of the total, 10 people were seriously injured, and 16 suffered minor injuries.
Of the four fatalities, the victim in Uonuma, a man in his 50s, died after apparently suffering acute illness while unloading snow from the roof of his house, according to the Niigata Prefectural Government.
A man in his 50s in Sado died while clearing snow. Of the two victims in Nagaoka, both men in their 70s, one died while plowing snow and the other while resting during snow removal work.
With a strong winter pressure pattern expected to continue until Sunday, the 性视界 Meteorological Agency warned of surges in snowfalls in short periods of time, especially in the Tohoku, Hokuriku and Tokai regions.
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