[Breaking News]Steam locomotive in Hokkaido

KUSHIRO, Japan, Jan. 15 Kyodo - JR Hokkaido's "Fuyu-no-Shitsugen" (Winter Wetland) steam locomotive runs in Kushiro on the northernmost Japanese main island of Hokkaido on Jan. 14, 2026, for a press preview three days before going into service for the general public. The sightseeing train will operate in the Kushiro Marsh, a Ramsar site, mainly on weekends until March 15. (Kyodo)

Steam locomotive in Hokkaido

Steam locomotive in Hokkaido

JR Hokkaido's "Fuyu-no-Shitsugen" (Winter Wetland) steam locomotive runs in Kushiro on the northernmost Japanese main island of Hokkaido on Jan. 14, 2026, for a press preview three days before going into service for the general public. The sightseeing train will operate in the Kushiro Marsh, a Ramsar site, mainly on weekends until March 15.

Japan: Heavy Snowfall in Hokkaido, Flights Disrupted 3

On January 8, heavy snow across Hokkaido caused major travel chaos. At New Chitose Airport, 27 flights were canceled and many delayed due to de-icing operations. JR Hokkaido suspended 29 services, including 25 "Rapid Airport" trains, while multiple expressways were closed. These disruptions led to massive queues at the airport, with travelers lining up across two floors for the train station.

Japan: Heavy Snowfall in Hokkaido, Flights Disrupted 2

On January 8, heavy snow across Hokkaido caused major travel chaos. At New Chitose Airport, 27 flights were canceled and many delayed due to de-icing operations. JR Hokkaido suspended 29 services, including 25 "Rapid Airport" trains, while multiple expressways were closed. These disruptions led to massive queues at the airport, with travelers lining up across two floors for the train station.

Japan: Heavy Snowfall in Hokkaido, Flights Disrupted

On January 8, heavy snow across Hokkaido caused major travel chaos. At New Chitose Airport, 27 flights were canceled and many delayed due to de-icing operations. JR Hokkaido suspended 29 services, including 25 "Rapid Airport" trains, while multiple expressways were closed. These disruptions led to massive queues at the airport, with travelers lining up across two floors for the train station.

Dominican Republic: Tropical Storm Melissa Batters, Causing Damage and Disruptions 2

Tropical Storm Melissa swept through the Dominican Republic, toppling trees, traffic lights, and triggering small landslides. Authorities closed schools and government offices across several provinces as the storm disrupted water systems and threatened severe flooding. Melissa is expected to strengthen into a Category 4 hurricane this weekend as it lashes the Caribbean with heavy rain and destructive winds.

Indonesia: Mt. Lewotobi Erupts, Triggers Highest Alert and Spews Ash High Into Sky

Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki on Flores Island, East Nusa Tenggara, erupted late Tuesday, October 15, and again early Wednesday, spewing ash up to 10 kilometers into the sky. Indonesia’s volcanology agency raised the alert to its highest level after detecting deep tremors that signaled possible explosive activity.

Tsunami warning issued in Japan

Tsunami warning issued in Japan

Women check evacuation information in front of the closed JR Hakodate Station in Hakodate in Hokkaido, northern Japan, on July 30, 2025, following the suspension of railway services after a tsunami warning for the country's Pacific coast was issued by the Japan Meteorological Agency in the wake of a powerful earthquake off Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula.

Tsunami warning issued in Japan

Tsunami warning issued in Japan

An electronic display at JR Sapporo Station in Sapporo in Hokkaido, northern Japan, shows train service suspensions due to a tsunami warning on July 30, 2025, following a powerful earthquake off Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula.

Tsunami warning issued in Japan

Tsunami warning issued in Japan

Electronic displays at JR Sapporo Station in Sapporo in Hokkaido, northern Japan, show train service suspensions due to a tsunami warning on July 30, 2025, following a powerful earthquake off Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula.

Summer heat in Hokkaido

Summer heat in Hokkaido

A thermometer in front of JR Obihiro Station in Hokkaido shows the temperature reaching close to 40 C amid unusually hot summer heat in the northern Japan city on July 24, 2025.

Summer heat in Hokkaido

Summer heat in Hokkaido

A thermometer in front of JR Obihiro Station in Hokkaido shows the temperature reaching close to 40 C amid unusually hot summer heat in the northern Japan city on July 24, 2025.

Summer heat in Hokkaido

Summer heat in Hokkaido

A thermometer in front of JR Obihiro Station in Hokkaido shows the temperature reaching close to 40 C amid unusually hot summer heat in the northern Japan city on July 24, 2025.

Summer heat in Hokkaido

Summer heat in Hokkaido

A thermometer in front of JR Obihiro Station in Hokkaido shows the temperature reaching close to 40 C amid unusually hot summer heat in the northern Japan city on July 24, 2025.

Summer heat in Hokkaido

Summer heat in Hokkaido

A thermometer in front of JR Obihiro Station in Hokkaido shows the temperature reaching close to 40 C amid unusually hot summer heat in the northern Japan city on July 24, 2025.

US: Severe Weather Warning for Houston Area With Hail, High Winds, Tornado Risk

The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for the Houston area until evening of Monday, May 5. It brought hail, damaging winds, flooding, and possible tornadoes.

Heavy snow in Hokkaido

Heavy snow in Hokkaido

Photo taken on Feb. 4, 2025, shows JR Kushiro Station after heavy snow in Kushiro on the northernmost Japanese main island of Hokkaido.

US: Sunset Fire Ignites In Hollywood Hills, Triggering Mandatory Evacuation Orders

A brush fire, dubbed the Sunset Fire, broke out in the Hollywood Hills on Wednesday evening, January 8, triggering mandatory evacuation orders.

Philippines: Thunderstorms Hit, Bringing Intense Rainfall To Central Regions

The regions of Visayas, Bicol, Calabarzon, and Mimaropa may experience cloudy skies with scattered rains as isolated thunderstorms hit. According to reports, heavy rainfall of 100 to 200 mm was expected in Northern Samar on Monday.

[Breaking News]Disney-themed shinkansen bullet train

SENDAI, Japan, Oct. 10 Kyodo - Video taken Oct. 10, 2024, shows a specially painted bullet train adorned with characters from Tokyo DisneySea's Fantasy Springs area -- themed after Disney films "Frozen," "Peter Pan" and "Tangled" -- ahead of its departure from JR Sendai Station in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan. The Disney-themed train will run through June 2025 on the Tohoku and Hokkaido Shinkansen lines linking Tokyo and the Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station, northern Japan. (Kyodo)

Disney-themed shinkansen bullet train

Disney-themed shinkansen bullet train

Photo taken Oct. 10, 2024, shows a specially painted bullet train adorned with characters from Tokyo DisneySea's Fantasy Springs area -- themed after Disney films "Frozen," "Peter Pan" and "Tangled" -- ahead of its departure from JR Sendai Station in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan. The Disney-themed train will run through June 2025 on the Tohoku and Hokkaido Shinkansen lines linking Tokyo and the Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station, northern Japan.

Disney-themed shinkansen bullet train

Disney-themed shinkansen bullet train

Mickey Mouse (C) sees off specially painted bullet trains adorned with characters from Tokyo DisneySea's Fantasy Springs area -- themed after Disney films "Frozen," "Peter Pan" and "Tangled" -- at JR Sendai Station in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Oct. 10, 2024. The Disney-themed trains will run through June 2025 on the Tohoku and Hokkaido Shinkansen lines linking Tokyo and the Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station, northern Japan.

Disney-themed shinkansen bullet train

Disney-themed shinkansen bullet train

Mickey Mouse poses in front of a specially painted bullet train adorned with characters from Tokyo DisneySea's Fantasy Springs area -- themed after Disney films "Frozen," "Peter Pan" and "Tangled" -- ahead of its departure from JR Sendai Station in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Oct. 10, 2024. The Disney-themed trains will run through June 2025 on the Tohoku and Hokkaido Shinkansen lines linking Tokyo and the Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station in Hokkaido, northern Japan.

Disney-themed shinkansen bullet train

Disney-themed shinkansen bullet train

Mickey Mouse (2nd from L) gestures prior to the departure of a specially painted bullet train adorned with characters from Tokyo DisneySea's Fantasy Springs area -- themed after Disney films "Frozen," "Peter Pan" and "Tangled" -- at JR Sendai Station in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Oct. 10, 2024. The Disney-themed train will run through June 2025 on the Tohoku and Hokkaido Shinkansen lines linking Tokyo and the Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station in Hokkaido, northern Japan.

Calls for end to Israeli raids on Gaza

Calls for end to Israeli raids on Gaza

People rally in front of JR Sapporo Station in Sapporo in Hokkaido, northern Japan, on Nov. 10, 2023, calling for an end to Israeli raids on Gaza.

Statue of Ainu elder erected at JR Sapporo Station

Statue of Ainu elder erected at JR Sapporo Station

SAPPORO, Japan - A wooden statue of an elder of the indigenous Ainu people of Hokkaido, northern Japan, is set up at JR Sapporo Station on Feb. 2, 2014, as part of efforts to introduce the ethnic group's culture.

JR Hokkaido unveils interior of H5 bullet trains

JR Hokkaido unveils interior of H5 bullet trains

NANAE, Japan - Snowflake patterns on the window screens in the first-class "Green Car" of the H5 series bullet trains for the Hokkaido Shinkansen line, expected to commence service in 2016, are seen during a press preview on Nov. 20, 2014, in the town of Nanae, Hokkaido Prefecture in northern Japan.

JR Hokkaido unveils interior of H5 bullet trains

JR Hokkaido unveils interior of H5 bullet trains

NANAE, Japan - Hokkaido Railway Co. unveils the interior of the premium "Gran Class" car of the H5 series bullet trains for the Hokkaido Shinkansen line, expected to commence service in 2016, to the press on Nov. 20, 2014, in the town of Nanae, Hokkaido Prefecture in northern Japan.

Steam train begins annual autumn service in Hokkaido

Steam train begins annual autumn service in Hokkaido

SAPPORO, Japan - The SL (Steam Locomotive) Niseko leaves JR Otaru station in Hokkaido Prefecture on Sept. 20, 2014. Every autumn, the steam train service operates for a limited period between Sapporo and Rankoshi via the popular resort town of Niseko. But operator Hokkaido Railway Co. is considering scrapping the service next year.

Sapporo's 'Ramen Republic' to mark 10th anniversary

Sapporo's 'Ramen Republic' to mark 10th anniversary

SAPPORO, Japan - The "Sapporo Ramen Republic," a theme park for noodle shops in the capital of Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, is set to celebrate the 10th anniversary of its opening at a commercial complex next to JR Sapporo Station on Oct. 1, 2014. The photo shows a ceremony held in December 2012 when the cumulative number of customers topped 10 million.

Hokkaido Shinkansen new station named 'Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto'

Hokkaido Shinkansen new station named 'Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto'

SAPPORO, Japan - Hokkaido Railway Co.'s new station building is under construction in Hokuto, Hokkaido, in March 2014. JR Hokkaido announced on June 11, 2014, that the name of the new station for the Hokkaido Shinkansen bullet train is "Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto." The bullet train line is planned to begin operating in 2016 spring.

Twilight Express to end service in spring of 2015

Twilight Express to end service in spring of 2015

OSAKA, Japan - A family gets a commemorative picture taken in front of the Twilight Express at JR Osaka Station on May 28, 2014. The West Japan Railway Co.'s luxurious sleeper train linking Osaka, western Japan, with Sapporo in Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, will end service next spring due to the aging of the rolling stock produced about 40 years ago.

JR Hokkaido's bullet train

JR Hokkaido's bullet train

SAPPORO, Japan - JR Hokkaido President Osamu Shimada, president of Hokkaido Railway Co., or JR Hokkaido, holds a press conference in Sapporo on April 16, 2014. Shimada said the company will connect southern Hokkaido and Tokyo in four hours and 10 minutes with a new bullet train line planned to begin operating in spring 2016.

Police raid JR Hokkaido over data falsification

Police raid JR Hokkaido over data falsification

SAPPORO, Japan - Police investigators enter the head office of Hokkaido Railway Co. in Sapporo, Hokkaido, on Feb. 12, 2014, for a raid in connection with falsification of maintenance data.

JR Hokkaido scandal

JR Hokkaido scandal

SAPPORO, Japan - Hokkaido Railway Co. President Makoto Nojima (2nd from R) and other executives bow in apology during a press conference in Sapporo, northern Japan, on Jan. 21, 2014. The railway operator announced punitive measures on a total of 75 employees over the failure to fix rail defects and the falsification of track maintenance data at the railway operator.

Gov't instructs JR Hokkaido

Gov't instructs JR Hokkaido

TOKYO, Japan - Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Minister Akihiro Ota holds a news conference in Tokyo on Jan. 21, 2014, on the ministry's instruction to Hokkaido Railway Co. in the wake of the previous year's revelations that it failed to fix rail defects and falsified track maintenance data.

Steam locomotive runs through Kushiro Marsh in winter

Steam locomotive runs through Kushiro Marsh in winter

TESHIKAGA, Japan - A steam locomotive runs through the snow-covered Kushiro Marsh in the town of Teshikaga in eastern Hokkaido, Japan, on Jan. 18, 2014. The locomotive on the JR Senmo Line began operating to attract tourists in winter. The Kushiro Marsh is the first Japanese marshland registered under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands.

JR Hokkaido apologizes for data falsification

JR Hokkaido apologizes for data falsification

SAPPORO, Japan - Makoto Nojima (C), president of Hokkaido Railway Co., known as JR Hokkaido, holds a press conference at the company's headquarters in Sapporo, Hokkaido, on Nov. 13, 2013, where he apologized over the railway operator's falsification of maintenance data.

JR Hokkaido apologizes for data falsification

JR Hokkaido apologizes for data falsification

SAPPORO, Japan - Makoto Nojima (C), president of Hokkaido Railway Co., known as JR Hokkaido, bows with others at a press conference at the company's headquarters in Sapporo, Hokkaido, on Nov. 13, 2013, where he apologized over the railway operator's falsification of maintenance data.

Cargo train derailment involving JR Hokkaido

Cargo train derailment involving JR Hokkaido

TOKYO, Japan - Norihiro Goto, chairman of the Japan Transport Safety Board, tells a press conference in Tokyo on Sept. 25, 2013, board inspectors found the track at the site of a Hokkaido Railway Co. cargo train derailment Sept. 19 to be up to 37 millimeters wider than normal, compared with 25 mm as found in June.

JR Hokkaido finds 170 more unrepaired rail defects

JR Hokkaido finds 170 more unrepaired rail defects

SAPPORO, Japan - Officials of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism arrive at the head office of Hokkaido Railway Co. in Sapporo, Hokkaido, on Sept. 25, 2013, for inspections. JR Hokkaido said the same day it has found 170 more unrepaired rail defects, bringing to 267 the total uncovered so far in its investigation into the previous week's cargo train derailment.

JR Hokkaido finds in-house maintenance rule violations

JR Hokkaido finds in-house maintenance rule violations

SAPPORO, Japan - Makoto Nojima, president of Hokkaido Railway Co., tells a press conference at the company's head office in Sapporo on Sept. 22, 2013, that it has found violations of its in-house track maintenance rules at a total of 97 locations on its railway lines.

Darvish's debut watched in Japan

Darvish's debut watched in Japan

SAPPORO, Japan - People at JR Sapporo Station in Sapporo, Hokkaido on April 10, 2012, watch the live TV broadcast of the major league debut of Texas Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish against the Seattle Mariners. Hokkaido is home of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, the team Darvish pitched for before joining the Rangers.

JR Hokkaido president found dead

JR Hokkaido president found dead

TOKYO, Japan - Undated file photo shows Naotoshi Nakajima, president of Hokkaido Railway Co., commonly known as JR Hokkaido. Nakajima went missing Sept. 12, 2011, after leaving suicide notes, and was found dead off the coast of Otaru, Hokkaido, on Sept. 18, 2011.

JR Hokkaido president missing

JR Hokkaido president missing

SAPPORO, Japan - Hokkaido Railway Co. President Naotoshi Nakajima speaks during a meeting of an advisory panel in Sapporo, Hokkaido, on Aug. 26, 2011, about a derailment and fire involving a JR Hokkaido train. Nakajima went missing Sept. 12 after leaving apparent suicide notes.

JR Hokkaido raided over derailment

JR Hokkaido raided over derailment

SAPPORO, Japan - Investigators go to the head office of Hokkaido Railway Co. in Sapporo, Hokkaido, on May 31, 2011, for a search over a train derailment and fire that injured 36 people on board.

JR Hokkaido raided over derailment

JR Hokkaido raided over derailment

SAPPORO, Japan - Investigators carry out boxes of seized materials from the head office of Hokkaido Railway Co. in Sapporo, Hokkaido, on May 31, 2011, over a train derailment and fire that injured 36 people on board.

Charred train in Hokkaido

Charred train in Hokkaido

SAPPORO, Japan - Personnel associated with Hokkaido Railway Co. probe train cars gutted by a fire in the village of Shimukappu, Hokkaido, on May 29, 2011. The express train made an emergency stop in the middle of a 685-meter tunnel on the JR Sekisho Line on May 27 due to the fire. Around 240 on board escaped the scene on foot, with some 30 of them injured after inhaling smoke or suffering burns.

Wooden nameplates at Asahikawa Station

Wooden nameplates at Asahikawa Station

ASAHIKAWA, Japan - Visitors look at a wall-like creation of wooden beams bearing the names of some 10,000 people at JR Asahikawa Station in Hokkaido on Oct. 10, 2010. The people donated for a project aimed at promoting wooden products in the city.

Hatoyama announces decision to step down as premier

Hatoyama announces decision to step down as premier

TOKYO, Japan - A woman puts up a newspaper extra reporting Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's announcement that he will step down, at JR Muroran Station in Muroran, Hokkaido, the prime minister's constituency.