The drill at Osaki Station on the Yamanote Line involved 50 participants and focused on passenger safety and coordination during a simulated onboard attack.
Station staff use sasumata to confront a man playing a knife-wielding attacker during a counterterrorism drill aboard a Yamanote Line train at JR Osaki Station on the morning of October 20. (©Sankei/Takumi Fujisawa)
The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's Osaki Police Station held an emergency response drill on October 20 at Osaki Station on the JR Yamanote Line in Tokyo, in preparation for possible incidents such as a knife attack on a train. The drill aimed to strengthen coordination among relevant agencies.
Police officers demonstrated how to use sasumata, long-handled restraint tools with forked ends, and explained response procedures to station staff.
About 50 people, including station staff, took part in the drill, which used an in-service train. The scenario involved a man wielding a knife and attacking passengers on a train traveling between Gotanda and Osaki stations.
Staff first guided passengers to safety and secured the area, then used sasumata to subdue the man playing the attacker.
Hiroyuki Namekawa, chief of the Osaki Police Station, said, "Indiscriminate stabbing attacks on public transportation have occurred in Tokyo. We will strengthen cooperation with the relevant agencies and work to prevent terrorist attacks."
(Read the article in Japanese.)
Author: The Sankei Shimbun