Each week, here at Osaka.com, we bring you a selection of some of the top stories about Osaka making the local and national news here in Japan. Sometimes it’s serious, sometimes it’s funny, but it’s always direct to you, from Osaka.
Two Die in Separate Danjiri Festival Accidents
Osaka’s autumn festival season took a tragic turn this week after two separate float accidents claimed two lives. The deaths came just days after another accident injured participants in Sakai, bringing the dangers surrounding one of the region’s best-known traditions into sharp focus.
Two men died and 16 other people suffered injuries when danjiri floats overturned at separate festivals in Osaka Prefecture on Saturday, October 10.
In Izumisano, a float toppled while participants manoeuvred it around a corner. A 51-year-old man riding aboard became trapped underneath. He later died at a hospital, while seven others suffered injuries.
A separate accident in Izumiotsu killed a 48-year-old man who had also been riding a float. Nine other people sustained injuries when it overturned.
Police said both accidents happened during cornering. The incidents followed another float accident in Sakai on October 3, which injured 11 people.
Danjiri festivals originated as prayers for a successful harvest in southwestern Osaka. Participants pull the floats through the streets using human power. One of the most dramatic elements, known as yarimawashi, involves taking corners without stopping.
That combination of speed, teamwork and spectacle helps explain the festivals’ appeal. It also leaves little room for error.
For communities that spend months preparing, the consequences extend far beyond the procession itself. A celebration built around neighbourhood pride has instead left families grieving and fellow participants recovering.
The challenge now lies in preserving the excitement of the tradition while examining how organisers can reduce the risks surrounding its most demanding manoeuvres.
Osaka Foster Care Advocates Rethink Their Message
An Osaka-based nonprofit organisation is reconsidering its public outreach after a nationwide survey revealed how little many people know about foster care.
Osaka Metropolitan University professor Kayoko Ito and the Japan Children Support Association surveyed 5,194 adults in April. More than half, 52.6%, said they knew nothing about foster parenting that provides children with a home for a period of time.
Only 14.6% understood that system either broadly or in detail.
Approximately 42,000 children across Japan cannot live with their parents. Most live in child welfare institutions, while placements with foster parents or similar caregivers accounted for 26.3% at the end of fiscal 2024.
Respondents most frequently identified financial costs as an obstacle to fostering. Concerns about relationships with children and their birth parents also featured prominently.
Association director Shinobu Iwasa now wants outreach to explain the practical support available. The organisation’s materials have begun highlighting monthly allowances of approximately ¥150,000 for foster parents providing this form of care.
Iwasa’s own experience gives that campaign a personal foundation: a girl who entered her care at four is now 19.
The survey points to a communication problem that a slogan alone cannot solve. Before people can consider fostering, they need to understand what it involves, what support exists and how it differs from adoption.
For Osaka’s advocates, making those questions easier to ask could prove as important as encouraging people to take the first step.
Osaka Connection Emerges in International Ransomware Investigation
An international ransomware investigation has an Osaka connection after authorities located a suspected member of the Qilin cybercrime group at a city hotel.
Japan’s National Police Agency said the group had targeted 53 organisations in Japan across sectors including manufacturing, services, construction, hospitals and schools. Officials did not disclose their names.
Qilin began operating around October 2022 and has attacked approximately 4,000 companies worldwide, according to the agency. Investigators have confirmed activity in Japan since April 2023.
Authorities found the 28-year-old Russian suspect in Osaka in May while he was visiting Japan. They subsequently detained him and handed him over to Germany earlier this month, where authorities arrested him.
He allegedly extorted cryptocurrency from a German logistics company in 2024. Qilin is also believed to have carried out the 2025 cyberattack on Asahi Group Holdings.
Ransomware attackers block access to data and demand payment to restore it. Separately, Japan’s government has urged businesses to address vulnerabilities following a series of reported data breaches.
Those wider incidents should not automatically be attributed to Qilin.
For readers in Osaka, the investigation illustrates how international cybercrime can intersect with events much closer to home. The alleged offence concerned a German company, yet a hotel stay in Japan became part of the investigation.
It also highlights why cybersecurity reaches beyond technology departments. When an organisation loses access to essential information, the consequences can affect employees, customers and the services they depend on.
And Finally: Sato Gives Tigers Fans Three Reasons to Celebrate
After a difficult week of news, Hanshin Tigers supporters can provide a welcome change of mood.
Teruaki Sato secured the Central League’s batting Triple Crown as the regular season ended on Thursday, October 8. The 27-year-old led the league with a .306 batting average, 39 home runs and 106 runs batted in.
He became the ninth player to achieve the feat and the first since Munetaka Murakami in 2022.
For Tigers fans, the comparison that matters most is Randy Bass. Sato is the first Hanshin player to claim the honour since Bass won it in both 1985 and 1986.
Sato, who played for Kindai University in Osaka before beginning his professional career in 2021, also helped Hanshin secure their first consecutive Central League pennants.
He credited gradual improvement and a better understanding of his batting rather than a deliberate pursuit of the Triple Crown. His latest season could also strengthen his prospects of fulfilling his ambition to play in Major League Baseball.
The achievement rewards consistency as well as power: topping the home-run table alone would not have been enough.
For supporters, it offers another milestone to savour alongside the league title. Whether discussing batting averages or simply enjoying another reason to wear Tigers colours, fans have plenty to talk about.
And this time, all three numbers make happy reading.
That’s all for now but be sure to check back again same time next week for another round of this week in Osaka!
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