Stranded vehicles are buried under snow along a road in Nakashibetsu, Hokkaido, northern Japan, Sunday, March 3, 2013. AP/Kyodo News
TOKYO – Heavy snow that fell on the main northern Japanese island of Hokkaido over the weekend has killed eight people, including a family whose car got buried.
Kyodo news service said Kazuyo Miyashita and her three children died at a hospital Saturday night of carbon-monoxide poisoning after their vehicle got buried in the snow. Her daughters were 17 and 14, and her son was 11.
Separately, 23-year-old Haruna Kitagawa froze to death after leaving her car, stuck in the snow.
Kyodo said a 53-year-old man died Sunday after getting buried in the snow, although his 9-year-old daughter found with him was recovering.
Two other men were found collapsed in the snow in another part of Hokkaido and were confirmed dead.