Death toll from O157 bacteria poisoning rises to 6
The Hokkaido Prefectural Government and the City of Sapporo said that two women in their 90s within the jurisdiction of the Ebetsu health center as well as a Sapporo woman in her 80s died.
The Sapporo government said the death of a 4-year-old girl on Aug. 11 was due to E. coli 0157 infection, and DNA tests matched the bacteria to that discovered in pickled Chinese cabbage, found to be the source of the mass food poisoning. The pickles were produced by Iwai Shokuhin, a food company in Sapporo's Nishi Ward.
(Mainichi, Aug 18)
19 Aug
The nation's largest underworld syndicate, the Kobe-based Yamaguchi-gumi, is 97 years old.
Jumping the gun on the gang's centennial by three years, Shukan Asahi Geino (Aug. 16-23) ran eight pages of historical photos under the title "Yamaguchi-gumi: A Turbulent First Century." (Japan Times)
19 Aug
An 18-year-old man died, and his mother, 50, and sister, 21, were in critical condition after a car crash on an expressway in Wake, Okayama Prefecture, on Friday night. His father, 52, was also injured. (Yomiuri)
18 Aug
At its peak of popularity roughly four decades ago, the form of soft-core pornography known as pinku eiga (pink films) utilized more than 1,000 theaters to screen short, low-budget, erotic films churned out mainly by independent studios. "Around each station of private rail lines there was a pink theater," chuckles industry veteran Akira Mori, the general manager of distributor Shintoho. (Tokyo Reporter)
18 Aug
Police said Friday that the body of a man was found beneath the kitchen floor of his house in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture.
(Japan Today)
18 Aug
An academic who turned 106 Thursday was recognized by Guinness World Records as the oldest person to have completed a round-the-world trip using public transportation. (Japan Times)