A couple who run travel blogs died while hiking in Japan after the wife jumped into a swollen river to save her husband and they were both swept away by the rapids.
According to mainland Chinese news outlet Red Star News, the 35-year-old Chinese wife, who used the pseudonym “Agu” on social media, and her unidentified 41-year-old Japanese husband were well-known among outdoor travel enthusiasts.
On June 29, a 48-year-old Chinese woman who had gone hiking with the couple in Gifu Prefecture reported to police that the couple had been dragged into a current.
Their bodies were found downstream a few hours later, police said.
They were taken to hospital where they were pronounced dead from drowning, according to reports.
The river where the couple fell is about 80 meters wide and up to 20 meters deep in places. The water level had risen due to heavy rainfall the previous day, and the current was fast.
Police said Agu threw a 100-metre rope to her husband in the river, who tried to swim to the other side and tie it to something but was engulfed in the water.
After a brief discussion with her friend, Agu decided to jump into the river alone to save her husband, but was quickly swept away by the water, according to her friend.
Police said both men were wearing life jackets at the time of their deaths.
After Ms Agu and her husband tied the knot in February 2023, she posted on social media: “I have chosen mountains as my lifelong hobby, and now I have chosen to climb mountains with my partner. I hope this will be the start of a happy life journey.”
“I hope that we can experience life together and that you will be by my side forever,” he said.
The tragedy has garnered much comment on social media in mainland China.
“She must have loved him very much. My respects to her. Rest in peace,” one netizen wrote on Weibo.
“This accident is a reminder that life jackets mean nothing in a major flood,” another said.
Fatal accidents during outdoor activities frequently make the news in China.
Earlier this month, a 58-year-old Chinese tourist died on Japan’s Mount Fuji. Police are still investigating the cause of death.
Last month, a male and female hiker drowned while exploring a canyon in eastern China’s Zhejiang Province.
