OSAKA (Kyodo) The new president of West Japan Railway Co. pledged Wednesday to make safety the carrier's priority and pledged not to forget the fatal April 2005 derailment in Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture.
"My biggest mission is to create a climate that places priority on safety," Masao Yamazaki, 62, said at a news conference at JR West's head office in Osaka following his appointment.
Yamazaki, former JR West vice president, said he plans to exhibit the derailed train and notes written by relatives of victims of the accident, which killed 107 people, including the driver.
The Hyogo Prefectural Police are currently keeping the train as evidence in their investigation into the crash.
"As soon as (the train) is returned, we want to display it at an appropriate facility and preserve it for many years to come so we will be able to pass it down to the next generation," Yamazaki said.
The head of the regional railway claimed JR West will handle in a sincere manner negotiations over compensation of victims' relatives and those injured in the accident.
About 550 passengers sustained injuries in the accident, in which the overspeeding train jumped the tracks on a curve and slammed into a condominium high-rise.
Yamazaki was recalled to JR West last June from his post as president of West JR Maintec Co., an affiliate of the railway, becoming vice president in charge of safety improvements.
His predecessor, Takeshi Kakiuchi, 61, who stepped down Tuesday to take responsibility for the accident, will remain a JR West board member and be in charge of negotiations on compensation for the accident victims and their families.
