At least two thousand cars have been stuck on a highway in Japan for hours due to a heavy snowstorm. Some vehicles were stuck in traffic for up to 36 hours, according to Japanese broadcaster NHK.
Not everyone has left yet. At least six hundred cars are still stuck on the highway. Three people had to go to the hospital.
Rescue workers have been digging out all the vehicles for hours. Food packages and blankets are also distributed to people who are still trapped in their cars.
“I was stuck for 36 hours and had no idea what was going on,” a truck driver told NHK. A motorist told him to eat snow because he had no food and water with him.
Snowstorms plague the north and west of Japan. A record amount of snow has fallen.
It will continue to snow in the region on the Sea of Japan in the coming days. At least 40 centimetres of snow is expected on Saturday.