Heavy snowfalls blanket central,northern Japan\'s coastal region

Heavy snow caused by a strong wintry pressure pattern fell on the coastal prefectures alongside the Sea of Japan in the country on Thursday, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), which warns of possible traffic disruption and avalanches. Heavy snowfalls covered a wide swathe of region including Aomori, Niigata and Tottori prefectures where more than two meters of snowfall was recorded by early Thursday morning. The JMA forecast that snowfalls up to 50 centimeters could lash northern Japan and the northwestern part of the Honshu Island, known as the Hokuriku region, in the 24 hours through Friday morning. The wintry pressure pattern is expected to abate from the western side but cold waves would sweep a large part of the eastern and western Japan in the latter half of the month, according to the JMA.