On the 23rd of this month, there was a problem with a train passing without the alarm sounding and the circuit breaker going down at the level crossing of the JR Tokushima Line running in Tokushima Prefecture, and JR Shikoku revealed the results of an investigation that the cause was a breakdown of the device that detects the approach of a train due to a lightning strike.
At around 23:1 p.m. on the 40rd of this month, a two-car upward local train passed at the Kojima Station West Railroad Crossing, located about 140 meters west of Kojima Station on the JR Tokushima Line in Mima City, Tokushima Prefecture, without the alarm going off or the barrier going down.
At that time, no one passed through the railway crossing and no one was injured.
Regarding this trouble, JR Shikoku revealed the results of an investigation that although the system is designed to keep the alarm going off and the barrier to remain in the down state when a level crossing fails, this time it seems that it did not work because the device that detects the approach of a train near the level crossing was broken by a lightning strike.
At that time, the atmospheric conditions in Tokushima Prefecture were extremely unstable, and it rained heavily in Mima City.
At a press conference, JR Shikoku President Sehiro Nishimaki stated, "We apologize for the concern caused to customers and everyone passing through the railroad crossing, and we would like to take measures to prevent a recurrence."