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Man crushed to death while demolishing shrine

TOKYO - A 60-year-old man was crushed to death on Monday under a shrine he was demolishing in Kakogawa City, Hyogo Prefecture.

Around 7:30 PM, a report came in from the Atago Shrine in Kakogawa City, stating that a man might be trapped under the shrine building.

Police and firefighters arrived at the scene to find the body of company employee Yasumi Ishimi (60) trapped under the shrine's building. Ishimi was taken to hospital and later confirmed dead.

According to police, the main deity of the Atago Shrine had been amalgamated with another nearby shrine, and the demolition of the building was in progress.

Ishimi was a former carpenter and had previously served as the representative of the shrine's parishioners at Atago Shrine. The police suspect that he was working alone when the shrine building collapsed and are investigating the details of the incident.

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