Snowfall reaches 91 cm in Hokkaido: heavy snow forces 2,000 to sleep at airport

▲ Sapporo saw record snowfall over the weekend, with even bicycles buried in snow. (Photo / fromREAL Hokkaido Facebook page)

Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

Hokkaido experienced record-breaking snowfall over the weekend, with Sapporo seeing snow accumulation of up to 65 cm for the first time in 29 years, severely disrupting both ground and air transportation. New Chitose Airport was forced to temporarily close its runways on the 11th due to 11 cm of snow, leading to the cancellation of about 183 flights and leaving over 2,000 passengers stranded overnight. As of the 12th, some flights remained canceled.

▲ % Urgent Roast No. 5 Emergency Dispatch ?? 000 passengers forced to sleep at the airport. (Photo / Screenshot from TBS News)

From the 9th to the morning of the 12th, Hokkaido was hit by heavy snow, heavily affecting transportation across the region. According to observations from the Sapporo Regional Meteorological Observatory, between the 9th and 11th, Sapporo recorded snow accumulation of up to 65 cm, while Shumarinai in Hokkaido’s Mukawa Town saw as much as 91 cm, with bicycles on the roadside buried under the snow.

Affected by the heavy snow, New Chitose Airport began canceling some flights starting on the 10th, leaving over 1,000 passengers stranded overnight; on the 11th, more than 183 flights were canceled, stranding over 2,000 passengers at the airport. It wasn’t until the afternoon of the 12th that normal takeoffs and landings resumed at New Chitose Airport.