JR Kyushu Shinkansen services suspended after receiving bomb threat

After it received a bomb threat on Sept. 28, Kyushu Railway Co. JR Kyushu has suspended services on the recently opened Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen bullet train line.

After an email threatening to bomb the route's facilities arrived, services on the Kyushu Shinkansen Line's new Nagasaki route, which was launched on Sept. 23, were suspended from 3 p.m. on Sept. 28, the railway operator said. The suspension will continue until safety along the route is confirmed.

According to the Omura Municipal GovernmentOmura Municipal Government in Nagasaki Prefecture, the email received on September 28: Sophisticated explosives have been planted at several locations along the Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen line. The email claimed that the bombs were going to explode at 3: 34 p.m. As the city of Omura hosts the Shin-Omura StationOmura Station, the municipal government has been on alert after contacting the prefectural police force and JR Kyushu. The city government suspects it is a pseudonym, despite the fact that the email had the sender's name.

Similar emails were sent to the Nagasaki Municipal Government and the Takeo Municipal Government in neighboring Saga Prefecture, according to JR Kyushu. The railway operator asked passengers to evacuate from all of the five stations in the affected section.

The 66 kilometer Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen line was inaugurated on Sept. 23 between Takeo-Onsen Station in the city of Takeo and Nagasaki Station.