Tokyo: The Japan Meteorological Agency warned of heavy snow, blizzards and high waves on Saturday as snow continued to fall mainly in areas on the Sea of Japan side of the country.

A strong winter atmospheric pressure pattern is expected to continue until Sunday and weaken on Monday, with a low-pressure system moving eastward from around the eastern part of the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido.

Snowfall reached 97 centimeters in the town of Oguni in the northeastern prefecture of Yamagata and 81 centimeters in the village of Sekikawa in the central prefecture of Niigata in the 24 hours to 5 a.m. Saturday (8 p.m. Friday GMT).

The village of Otoinepp, Hokkaido, logged 24-hour snowfall of 73 centimeters as of 1 a.m., and the central city of Nagoya had 10 centimeters as of 9 a.m.

Around 8:30 p.m. Friday, a resident in his 60s was found lying on a prefectural road in the town of Kumakogen in the western prefecture of Ehime and was later confirmed dead at a hospital.

He is believed to have had a slip due to snow.

As a large-scale power failure hit the same Ehime town, the prefectural government asked the Self-Defense Forces for a disaster relief mission.

The rough weather caused delays in Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen bullet train services and partial closures on the Higashimeihan, Chugoku and Oita expressways.

Japan Airlines canceled a total of 38 flights, mainly those to and from airports on the Sea of Japan side, affecting some 2,170 passengers.

All Nippon Airways also canceled many flights.

JIJI Press