What’s meant to be a fun family getaway can turn tragic in an instant—and that’s exactly what happened at a ski resort in northern Japan.
Five-year-old Hinata Goto died after a horrific accident on a travelator at the Asarigawa Onsen Ski Resort in Hokkaido.
Just as he was stepping off the moving walkway, he slipped. His right arm became trapped in the machinery below.
A built-in safety system was supposed to stop the belt immediately. It didn’t.
The travelator only shut down when Hinata’s mother hit the emergency stop.
Rescue workers spent 40 agonising minutes dismantling the machine to free him.
Safety Failure Probed
By then, he had lost consciousness. He was later pronounced dead in hospital.
The resort says the safety mechanism had worked earlier that same day, raising troubling questions about why it failed when it mattered most.
Police are now investigating whether negligence in maintenance or design played a role.
Visitors say the travelator—about 30 metres long, narrow, and without handrails—has long felt unsafe.
“Even as an adult, it’s a little scary,” one regular told Asahi Shimbun. Hokkaido draws millions of skiers each winter.
This tragedy is a sobering reminder that even routine infrastructure must never be taken lightly. Especially when children are involved.
