AMAGASAKI, Japan -At least he was alive.
Hours after Japan's worst train crash in decades, rescue teams found Hiroki Hayashi in an open space in the wreckage with his legs badly hurt, but he was still conscious.
Workers, however, faced a major hurdle: they could not get the 19-year-old college student out. Rescuers could pass him water and put him on an intravenous drip, but he was pinned down by slabs of metal and the bodies of victims.
Firefighters feared sparks from an electric drill would ignite spilled fuel.
We had to use hydraulic-equipped machines to pry open a space
said Hideki Maeda of the Amagasaki Fire Department.
Early yesterday, rescuers finally freed Hayashi from the wreckage 22 hours after the crash in Amagasaki in western Japan, the final survivor pulled from the shattered train. As of early yesterday, the death toll was 81, with more bodies expected to be uncovered. At least 456 people were injured.
He really endured a lot despite hours of pain firefighter Shohei Matsuda said.
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Local police stand on a track and watch as the crashed trains are removed from the site of the accident in Amagasaki, western Japan, Tuesday, April 26, 2005. One of the worst train accident in decades killed 73 passengers and injuring more than 400 follow
