© Mainichi/Shin YamamotoCarp streamers that were set up for Children's Day on May 5 are seen next to a field blanketed in snow in Ichinohe, Iwate Prefecture, on May 8, 2023.
According to the Morioka Local Meteorological Office, a low-pressure system and front off the Sanriku coast brought cold air into the region, resulting in snow mainly in and around the mountains. It was a complete change from the warm spring and early summerlike temperatures the prefecture has been seeing recently.
The Iwate Prefecture town of Ichinohe recorded 3 centimeters of snow on May 8, the first day after the Golden Week holidays in Japan. Since statistics began, there is no record of snow at observation points in the prefecture after May 3, and this year's snowfall is believed to be the latest ever.
The snow created several unseasonal sights. In Ichinohe, a field at an elementary school turned white as carp streamers that had been set up for Children's Day on May 5 flapped in driving snow. Snow also covered rows of cherry trees already dropping their blossoms.
A worker at Oku-nakayama kogen Station on the Iwate Galaxy Railway Line in the prefecture commented, "The winter snow melted away in March and we had a series of warm days, so I was surprised to see snow accumulate now. Perhaps because many people have already switched from winter car tires to normal ones, this morning there were a lot of commuters using the railway."
© Mainichi/Shin YamamotoTulips are seen covered in snow on May 8, 2023, the day after the Golden Week holidays, in Ichinohe, Iwate Prefecture.
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