Authorities are still searching for survivors after the partial collapse of a tunnel in Japan on Saturday night. NBC's Lester Holt has more. By NBC News staff and wire servicesUpdated at 10:50 p.m. ET: TOKYO — A tunnel on a major highway in central Japan collapsed on Sunday, killing nine people and starting a blaze, Japanese media reported.
Follow @NBCNewsUS (http://twitter.com/NBCNewsUS)Rescue efforts inside the smashed tunnel, which began spewing smoke after concrete ceiling panels fell onto the road, were delayed by the fallen debris, public broadcaster NHK (http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/20121203_10.html) reported.
Nine bodies were recovered, including five from a burned van and three more from another vehicle, according to news reports.
The fire service earlier said at least seven people were unaccounted for in the 2.8-mile tunnel in Yamanashi prefecture, about 50 miles west of Tokyo on the Chou Expressway, a main road connecting the capital to western Japan.
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