Overview
- The married couple who died, Matsuda Masaya, 36, and his wife Yoko, 37, appeared to try multiple ways to escape, with scratches on the door and frame, a ladle handle removed to pry, and hand injuries consistent with striking the glass.
- At the time of the fire the sauna door used an L‑shaped wooden knob that had come off, and earlier design documents indicated the door was originally specified to open by pushing from inside.
- Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s Investigation Division 1 is pursuing a criminal probe on suspicion of professional negligence resulting in death.
- The store owner told investigators the receiver linked to the in‑sauna emergency button had never been powered on, and it was reportedly off during the fire.
- Iwaki City in Fukushima began joint inspections of local sauna-equipped public baths and confirmed at one hotel that emergency buttons functioned and doors operated safely, with checks planned at 21 sites.