Sawt Falasteen - Mount Fuji ends hiking season with landslide, two rescues

Three vehicles belonging to people working on the mountain were partially buried Wednesday, as powerful gusts and torrential rain battered the popular hiking destination, a local official told AFP.

No injuries were reported in the incident, which occurred in a parking lot at one of the 3,776-metre (12,388-foot) volcano's four main access gates, said Hisayuki Motohashi, a road maintenance official for the Shizuoka regional government.

Separately, Shizuoka police said on Thursday they had been called to help rescue two hikers.

A man who appeared to be in his 30s or 40s was found collapsed near the summit Wednesday while another man who appeared to be in his 60s was found fallen on a trail the same day, according to a local police official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

She did not provide details about the condition of both individuals.

The local Shizuoka government and official mountain guides posted video clips and photos from the mountain Thursday morning, showing access roads and gravel trails covered with dense mist and rain.

Mount Fuji attracts more than 200,000 hikers every year during its official opening period from July through September.

Local police rescue dozens of people and report a few deaths every year.

In recent years, communities around the popular mountain have tightened access rules to Mount Fuji to ease severe overtourism problems.

They have also tried to stop poorly equipped climbers from summitting and mandating that visitors spend at least one night at one of the huts on the trails.

On Tuesday, hundreds of Asian Games athletes in Japan were briefly evacuated from their accommodation as record rainfall lashed host city Nagoya.

O.Farraj--SF-PST