A summary of public reports, written by Ski in Sky and checked against each source. It is not an official investigation, and it may change as investigations continue.
What happened
About 15:40 on 15 January an emergency call reached police by iPhone satellite SOS saying a group had got lost while backcountry skiing near Furano Ski Resort and could not get back. The temperature in Furano was -13.8 C at 22:00. Police mountain rescue searched and found all seven outside the ski area's managed area about 02:20 on 16 January, around 11 hours after the call. None was hurt.
About 15:40 is the emergency SOS call (sent by iPhone satellite SOS), not when the group got lost. They were found about 02:20 on 16 January.
Where
Outside the ski areaBackcountry outside the managed area of Furano Ski Resort, Furano city; the group was found on Furano-nishidake, next to the ski area.
Known only to the area.
Link to the ski area
Near a ski area, not inside it
Kyodo: '富良野スキー場の管理区域外' (outside the managed area of Furano Ski Resort), found 'スキー場周辺の富良野西岳'. Outside the managed area, so not attributed to the resort.
People
Died0
Injured0
Rescued7
What is known about the cause
Not confirmed
- Whether the skins actually broke; police described it only as a possibility.
- Where and how the group left the ski area, and whether they had a guide.
Sources
- Kyodo News (via Yahoo! News) ↗ · 2026-01-16
- Kyodo News (via Yahoo! News) ↗ · 2026-01-16
- Kyodo News (via Yahoo! News) ↗ · 2026-01-16
- UHB (Hokkaido Cultural Broadcasting) ↗ · 2026-01-16
- UHB (Hokkaido Cultural Broadcasting) ↗ · 2026-01-24
Last checked against the sources on 2026-10-22.