5-Year-Old Boy Dies After Falling and Getting Arm Trapped in Ski Resort Escalator

A 5-year-old boy has died following a skiing trip accident in Japan.

On Sunday, Dec. 28, a customer was fatally injured after becoming trapped in an outdoor escalator while visiting the Asari Ski Resort in Otaru, Hokkaido, according to a statement from the resort. Japanese newspaper The Asahi Shimbun identified the victim as 5-year-old Hinata Goto.

“A serious accident occurred on the escalator connecting the parking lot and center house at around 10:12 a.m. on Dec. 28, in which a customer was caught in the escalator and died,” the resort said.

Hinata had been riding the belt-conveyor escalator with his mother and attempted to step off the 30-meter walkway when he fell and his arm became caught in the winding mechanism at the top, The Guardian and The Asahi Shimbun reported.

At around 10 a.m. local time, Hinata’s mother called emergency services to report that her son was trapped. He was freed about 40 minutes later, but he was unconscious, according to the outlets. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

The Asahi Shimbun reported that there were allegedly no staff members in the immediate area when the boy became trapped. The slope’s general manager, Kensuke Tamagawa, told the outlet that employees had been instructed not to go near the escalator due to safety concerns.

Officials told The Asahi Shimbun that a maintenance cover installed at the escalator’s endpoint is designed to stop the system if an object becomes caught, but it did not activate during the incident. Instead, the outlet reported, Hinata’s mother pressed the emergency stop button located at the end of the escalator to bring it to a halt.

The Hokkaido Police are investigating the incident, The Asahi Shimbun reported.

In its statement, the Asari Ski Resort said, “We would like to express our deepest condolences to the family of the deceased customer and offer our heartfelt condolences to the family. We would also like to offer our deepest apologies for the occurrence of such a serious accident at a facility operated by our company.”

The company added that it is fully cooperating with the police investigation and said it is inspecting related facilities and reviewing safety measures to help prevent a recurrence.