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August 13, 2026
 

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SINKHOLES

Japan's parliament has enacted a bill to promote measures for ensuring the proper maintenance and management of sewerage facilities.
JAPAN
Jul 15, 2026
Japan enacts bill to bolster maintenance of sewerage facilities
The bill was in response to last year¡¯s sinkhole incident in Saitama Prefecture.
About 748 kilometers of sewer pipes in Japan, roughly 16% of those inspected, have been found to require countermeasures due to risks such as cave-ins, prompting the infrastructure ministry to call for immediate repairs.
JAPAN
Apr 21, 2026
Hundreds of kilometers of Â鶹´«Ã½ sewers classified as needing action
The infrastructure ministry will ask 383 municipalities and organizations managing the sewer pipes to take immediate measures.
A makeshift bridge built over a sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Wednesday as the road that collapsed in January 2025 was partially reopened to traffic
JAPAN
Apr 15, 2026
Saitama road affected by sinkhole partially restored
The January incident covered a six-way intersection and left a truck driver dead.
Saitama Gov. Motohiro Ono speaks to reporters on Thursday after receiving the final report from the investigative committee in the city of Saitama.
JAPAN
Feb 20, 2026
Pipe corrosion confirmed as cause of 2025 Saitama sinkhole
A committee concluded that the emergence of the sinkhole was not necessarily predictable.
The construction site at the location of a sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Monday
JAPAN
Jan 28, 2026
Saitama sinkhole remains open a year after forming
Work to fix the hole, caused by a sewer pipe rupture underneath an intersection, is expected to take at least five to seven years to complete.
A sinkhole has formed in the prefectural road in Ogimi, Okinawa Prefecture, on Monday morning due to a leak caused by the rupture of a water pipe.
JAPAN
Nov 24, 2025
Water outages expected in 17 Okinawa municipalities
The leak was caused by the rupture of a water pipe laid in the village of Ogimi in the northern part of Okinawa Island.
A construction crew works at the site of a massive sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, in February.
JAPAN
Sep 5, 2025
Saitama sinkhole attributed to hydrogen sulfide corrosion
Hydrogen sulfide was detected in corroded concrete fragments recovered from the accident site.
A sinkhole in Yashio, which emerged in January, was triggered by a ruptured, aging sewer pipe. Authorities worry that similar sections of infrastructure across the country are also at risk of corrosion.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
May 19, 2025
That sinking feeling: Â鶹´«Ã½ aging sewers are an infrastructure time bomb
A tragic accident in Saitama shows how aging pipes, soft soil and climate threats are straining the country¡¯s infrastructure.
Firefighters see off a vehicle carrying a body recovered from a sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on May 2.
JAPAN
May 14, 2025
Body in Saitama sinkhole identified as that of truck driver
The body was found on May 2 after the truck fell into the sinkhole created at the center of an intersection in the city of Yashio on Jan. 28.
Workers stand around a vehicle carrying the body of a person recovered from a sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Friday.
JAPAN
May 2, 2025
Truck driver¡¯s body recovered from huge Japan sinkhole after three months
A road in the city of Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, caved in during morning rush hour in late January while the 74-year-old man was driving his truck on it.
Police and firefighters prepare to enter a sewage pipe at the site of a sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Thursday.
JAPAN
May 1, 2025
Authorities find what appear to be human remains in Saitama sinkhole
Investigators had hoped to find the 74-year-old driver of a truck that fell into the sinkhole in January.
The site of a sinkhole in Yashio City, Saitama Prefecture, on Tuesday as recovery work continues.
JAPAN
Feb 28, 2025
A month on, still no timeline for Saitama sinkhole restoration work
With efforts to find a driver who fell in expected to take about three months, there is no concrete timeline in place on when such work can begin.
A sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Feb. 5
JAPAN / Society
Feb 21, 2025
Japan to promote digital transformation for water systems
This move follows a road collapse incident in Saitama Prefecture, last month, believed to have been caused by a broken sewage pipe.
A site in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, where a road cave-in occurred in January
JAPAN
Feb 14, 2025
Sewage pipe abnormalities found at locations in Saitama Prefecture
Inspections were carried out as a deteriorated sewage pipe is believed to have caused a road cave-in the city of Yashio.
Saitama Gov. Motohiro Ono on Tuesday announces the decision to apply the disaster relief law to the city of Yashio in Saitama Prefecture, where a cave-in occurred that trapped a truck and its driver.
JAPAN
Feb 12, 2025
Truck cab confirmed in sewer pipe at Saitama sinkhole site
The company that owns the truck that fell in identified through drone footage that the metal object was a part of the vehicle.
The site of a sinkhole at a crossroads in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Tuesday
JAPAN
Feb 10, 2025
Saitama sewer rupture expected to take years to repair
Repairs lasting at least two to three years would be necessary if the entire sewer needs to be replaced.
The sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Feb. 3
JAPAN
Feb 10, 2025
Saitama sinkhole search for missing driver shifts to sewer pipe
No clues to the missing driver¡¯s whereabouts were found on Sunday, and authorities have decided to shift the search due to safety concerns.
The sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Wednesday. It has expanded since the initial collapse on Jan 28.
JAPAN
Feb 6, 2025
Truck cabin found in sewer pipe in Saitama sinkhole rescue operation
Despite the development, the truck¡¯s 74-year-old driver remained missing as of Thursday morning.
A site where a road collapsed in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, swallowing a truck, is seen on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Feb 5, 2025
Japan plans to strengthen water infrastructure after major road collapse
The move comes after it is believed a damaged sewer pipe caused a sinkhole to open up in the city of Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Jan. 28.
Construction workers near a sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Monday
JAPAN / Society / EXPLAINER
Feb 3, 2025
Why it¡¯s taking so long to reach the driver trapped in a Saitama sinkhole
The biggest challenge for the operation, now in its seventh day, is that the sinkhole continues to expand, complicating the rescue efforts.
Gut bacteria may be behind many of Â鶹´«Ã½ colorectal cancer cases
A Japanese research team found that a toxin produced by certain E. coli strains, colibactin, caused genetic mutations in nearly half of colorectal cancer cases studied
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
She is Russia¡¯s richest woman. Her business empire is going up in flames.
Tatyana Kim, the head and co-founder of Wildberries, speaks about Ukrainian drone attacks on the company's warehouses in the course of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, at an unidentified location, in this still image from a handout video released on July 31.
Severe tropical storm Chan-hom makes landfall near Tokyo
Severe Tropical Storm Chan-hom made landfall around Ibaraki Prefecture, near Tokyo, on Tuesday night.
What Â鶹´«Ã½ language rules for permanent residency should look like
Potential health care workers hoping to find work in Japan take Japanese language instruction in Jakarta. Not all applicants for permanent residency should be expected to reach this level of proficiency.
Where do foreign residents in Japan want to die?
The Yokohama Foreign General Cemetery is one of the few cemeteries in Japan that allows burials, albeit with conditions for the deceased, including foreign nationality and permanent residency in Kanagawa Prefecture.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
As Â鶹´«Ã½ concrete jungles sizzle, urban forestry offers an all-natural fix
People and birds find relief from the sun in Tokyo's Nakano Ward earlier this month. While experts agree that urban greening is crucial to mitigating the impact of climate change, trees are becoming even more scarce in Japanese cities.
Â鶹´«Ã½ brewers experiment with a secret ingredient: music
At Smoke Craft, a craft beer brewery in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, music isn't just a background to the brewing process ¡ª it's an ingredient.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

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