An accident occurred at Shin-Kanuma Station, situated north of Tokyo, involving the Tokyo-bound Spacia express train, according to Tochigi prefectural police. The Spacia X express train made contact with four workers on the Tobu Nikko Line in Kanuma on Thursday.

The incident led to the loss of four lives—three workers and a supervisor. They were promptly taken to a hospital but were declared dead shortly after, confirmed by police and Tobu Railway Co., the train operator.

Fortunately, six other individuals at the site, comprising two additional workers, three lookout personnel, and an on-site supervisor, were unharmed. This team was tasked with herbicide spraying. Furthermore, the approximately 50 passengers aboard the train remained uninjured.

Railway authorities are currently unsure why the workers failed to vacate the tracks as the train approached or what the lookout team was doing at that moment. They are actively working with authorities to investigate the cause of the incident.

Typically, those on lookout duty are responsible for alerting their colleagues about an approaching train, allowing them to evacuate. Their job involves waving a flag at the train; the train driver then sounds the horn as a signal and proceeds with caution. Early reports from the workers speculate communication issues, although the events leading to the accident are still under investigation, according to Tobu officials.

“We take this severe accident seriously, and we will ensure preventive measures and never let this happen,” stated Takao Suzuki, head of Tobu’s railway business division, who apologized for the tragedy.

Japan is known for its safe and punctual transit systems, making fatal train accidents rare. Train services along the line were halted for several hours but resumed later that Thursday.