A shinkansen driver who dozed off at the wheel last week may be suffering from sleep apnea syndrome, officials said Sunday.
The 33-year-old West Japan Railway Co. driver fell asleep for about eight minutes while at the controls of the Hikari No. 126 on Wednesday afternoon. The train's safety system brought the shinkansen to stop about 90 meters short of its designated spot at Okayama Station. No one was injured in the incident.
Sufferers of sleep apnea syndrome stop breathing during sleep more than 20 times per hour, which often leads them to be drowsy when awake.
JR West officials said the preliminary diagnosis was made by a doctor who is checking the driver and has observed his sleep patterns. The driver was hospitalized in Hiroshima for a medical examination after the incident and was transferred to a hospital in Osaka on Sunday to undergo more detailed tests and a final diagnosis.