Record snowfall hits northern Japan

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Record snowfall hits northern Japan

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Freak snow fall hit areas of northern Japan's Hokkaido Island.

17 January,2012 01:50 pm

Too late for Christmas and far from a dream, residents in northern Japan were snowed under on Monday after a freak storm hit the islands Iwamizawa city.The mounds of snow measured some 200 centimetres (78 inches) by 1700 local time (0800 GMT) on Monday, the citys highest since records began in 1946, the islands meteorological agency said.According to scientists, they were unable to confirm how much new snow fell across the area, after many of their measuring instruments in Iwamizawa were damaged by the storm on Monday.For many residents, too, the sudden snow fall came as a surprise. Council workers swapped their suits for shovels to dig out citizens stranded in their own homes.Im very grateful, very grateful indeed, said one elderly resident as the rescue team cleared a pathway to her front door through the snow.Fire fighters were dispatched to put out a blaze at one business in the city, after the weight of snow caved in the firms wooden roof and knocked over wood- and oil-burning stoves, local media reported.Many bus and train services across the area remain suspended on Tuesday, after some 200 trains were cancelled on Monday due to snow on the tracks, the city council said.