He left his 7-year-old son alone on Mount Fuji to continue the climb with his older brother. A decision that triggered the intervention of the police and which is causing discussion in Japan. The incident occurred on Thursday 20 August along the Fujinomiya trail, one of the routes that lead to the summit of the most famous volcano in the country. The protagonist is a 48-year-old man from Nagoya, who climbed the mountain together with his two children.
Having arrived at the sixth station, at around 2,500 meters above sea level, the youngest child reportedly told his father that he was too tired to continue. At that point the man apparently decided to leave him there, continuing the climb together with his eldest son. According to reports from police and Japanese media, the father told the child to wait for him in the same spot for about eight hours.
An employee of a shelter in the area noticed the scene. The man allegedly heard father and son arguing around 7 am and then saw the child sitting alone on a bench. The call to the police was made around 7.40am.
Conditions on the mountain, meanwhile, were worsening: the area was shrouded in fog and the child was alone in an environment where temperatures and visibility can change rapidly. A refuge manager also recalled that not far away there are exposed areas in which a fall could have very serious consequences. The child was then taken into custody and placed safe.
When the officers managed to contact the father, the 48-year-old had already continued the climb to the eighth station area together with his eldest son. He was ordered to return immediately. The 48-year-old reportedly acknowledged having made a “very rash” decision and apologised.
The risks of Mount Fuji
At 3,776 metres, Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan and one of the country’s symbolic places. Since 2013 it has been included in the list of UNESCO world heritage sites and every year, during the climbing season, it attracts hundreds of thousands of hikers. However, the large turnout has pushed the authorities in recent years to introduce greater controls and new rules to limit improvised climbs. Bad weather, sudden changes in temperature, poor preparation and altitude continue to cause numerous rescue operations.