Heavy snow fell Wednesday on a wide region encompassing the greater Tokyo area as well as Yamanashi and Nagano prefectures, disrupting traffic during the morning rush hour and causing people to slip and suffer injuries.
The Meteorological Agency said snowfall had passed its peak by Wednesday evening but warned of icy roads. In Tokyo and its vicinity, at least 158 people suffered injuries by falling down and other snow-related causes, according to fire department and prefectural officials.
By 4 p.m., the city of Maebashi in Gunma Prefecture had recorded 17 cm of accumulated snow, while the city of Utsunomiya in Tochigi Prefecture registered 16 cm and Kumagaya in Saitama Prefecture 10 cm.
Temperatures in the Kanto-Koshin region are predicted to rise sharply Thursday, hitting a central Tokyo high of 15 degrees, compared with 5.4 Wednesday.