It’s Monday, which is the worst way to start the week, isn’t it? So, how about some heart-warming news to get things going?
Let’s see, what have we got? Oh, yes, a story about how, while alighting from a train in Japan’s Saitama Prefecture, a woman slipped and became pinned between the train and the platform.
Wait, that’s not the heart-warming part!
Around 9:15 on Monday morning at Minamiurawa Station, a woman in her 30s got the fright of her life when she slipped and found herself lodged between the train and the platform, pinned at her hips.
Fortunately, the station staff were paying close attention and caught the problem immediately, quickly announcing, “Someone is trapped!”
According to one Twitter user who was on the scene at the time, the station staff first asked passengers to move to the opposite side of the train, but when it became clear that merely shifting their weight to one side of the car wasn’t going to be enough to pull the unfortunate commuter free, staff called everyone off the train to help.
Fellow commuters then disembarked and pushed the train away from the platform with all their might, allowing the staff to free the trapped woman.
Once she was pulled to safety, the woman was taken to the hospital, though fortunately she had no visible injuries.
If you’re wondering how this could possibly happen, the East Japan Railway Company explained that the gap between the train and platform is about 20 centimeters (7.87 inches). Just enough for someone to get properly stuck, we imagine.
The company went on to explain that the train car weighed about 32 tonnes (about 35 US tons), including its base and wheels. However, thanks to the suspension, pushing on the car only moved the upper body, and didn’t affect the wheels’ placement.
Apparently, even with all this commotion, the train was only eight minutes late! We’re thinking the company should get a new logo, maybe something like: “East Japan Railways: getting you to work and giving you a solid workout!”
Japanese Internet users felt the cockles of their hearts warming:
This is such a great story!
This is really amazing.
I’m glad she wasn’t injured!
What a sense of unity. I wish I could have to been there. I wish I could have helped them push.
It’s a great story, but the photo is so surreal!
All that and only eight minutes late? Isn’t that amazing?
It looks like a festival!
Japan’s not finished after all!
Who the heck took this photo? If you have time to snap pictures, get in there and push!!
There’s always someone who’s got something to grumble about…
This isn’t the first time that someone has fallen from the edge of a platform in Japan. Just last month, a woman fell through the gap at Roppongi Station and ended up lying next to the train as it departed, having been mistaken for dropped luggage. Fortunately, that woman also survived unscathed.
Well, we hope you have a great Monday! If nothing else, you can at least be glad you’re not trapped between a train car and a platform!
Sources: Itai News 2Channel, Yomiuri Online, Twitter

Woman delivers baby on passenger train just outside of Tokyo
Elementary school girls rescue wheelchair-bound woman stranded on train tracks
Kyoto train station thanks commuters for saving life of passenger who fell on the train tracks
Woman in Tokyo gives birth onboard one of Japan’s busiest train lines
Attempted murder at a Japanese train station
Starbucks Japan opens new Kyoto store in Place of Scenic Beauty
Komachi Shokudo: Japanese mum’s-style cooking for breakfast, lunch and dinner in Tokyo
Studio Ghibli adds new Mother’s Day gift sets to its anime collection in Japan
Is this Japan’s most extreme cherry blossom viewing? Leap, cycle and climb through 2,500 sakura
Virtual idol Hatsune Miku redesigned with look that adds new elements and brings back old ones
Mr. Sato seeks meaty, booze-soaked redemption at Lopia【Japan’s Best Home Senbero】
Häagen-Dazs Japan releases new ASMR ice cream called “Rocky Crunchy!”
This is Japan’s, and the world’s, first capsule hotel, and you can still stay there
Getting a driver’s license in Japan the hard way: The first written test
Criminals of Japan’s Edo Period Were Often Punished by Getting Face Tattoos
Studio Ghibli releases Catbus pullback keychain that runs like the anime character
Nine great places to see spring flowers in Japan, as chosen by travelers (with almost no sakura)
Starbucks Japan opens new cafe and art gallery in top Tokyo tourist neighbourhood
Is Japan’s Crab-shaped Cup Ramen Timer worth the hype?
Pizza Hut Japan teams up with creator of one of the country’s best kinds of ramen for ramen pizza
Starbucks Japan releases a new Cream Puff Frappuccino for a limited time
The top 10 graduation songs in Japan as chosen by current Japanese high school students
Pikachu and Eevee become handmade Lladró porcelain sculptures to celebrate Pokémon’s 30th birthday
Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Starbucks Japan unveils new sakura cherry blossom collection for hanami season 2026
Foreign tourists in Japan will get free Shinkansen tickets to promote regional tourism
The 10 most annoying things foreign tourists do on Japanese trains, according to locals
Super-salty pizza sends six kids to the hospital in Japan, linguistics blamed
Starbucks Japan unveils new sakura Frappuccino for cherry blossom season 2026
Naruto and Converse team up for new line of shinobi sneakers[Photos]
Starbucks Japan releases first-ever Hinamatsuri Girls’ Day Frappuccino
Survey asks foreign tourists what bothered them in Japan, more than half gave same answer
Japan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
We deeply regret going into this tunnel on our walk in the mountains of Japan
Studio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home
Japan’s newest Shinkansen has no seats…or passengers [Video]
Major Japanese hotel chain says reservations via overseas booking sites may not be valid
Put sesame oil in your coffee? Japanese maker says it’s the best way to start your day【Taste test】
No more using real katana for tourism activities, Japan’s National Police Agency says
“Get down!” Man leaps onto train tracks to save fallen woman
Commuter chaos at Shibuya Station after glass window breaks on door of crowded Japanese train
“Can you drop a bomb on America?” Japanese man shocks commuters from tracks of busy train station
Student gets locked inside Japanese station after the last train
Back to work, and back to packed commuter trains in coronavirus emergency state-Tokyo【Photos】
Drink hot sake at Tokyo train station’s “phantom platform”
Man boards women-only carriage on Japanese train, gets his glasses knocked off【Video】
Woman kills self jumping onto train tracks, delay causes conductor to jump off tracks at other station
Starbucks on a Shinkansen bullet train platform: 6 tips for using the automated store in Japan
Tokyo station platform to transform into sake bar with hot drinks, hot oden, and hot kotatsu
Shitty Shibuya – Dozens of human turds discovered on Tokyo train platform
Commuter chaos around Tokyo during peak hour after Typhoon Trami hits Japan 【Pics & Video】
Disturbing video shows man hitting woman for crossing her legs on Japanese train【Video】
We check out the awesome Tokyo restaurant sandwiched between two active train tracks