A young Australian woman has died following a tragic accident on a chair lift at a ski resort in central Japan, officials and witnesses have confirmed.

Brooke Day, aged twenty-two and originally from Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, was at the Tsugaike Mountain Resort in Otari, Nagano Prefecture, when the incident occurred as she was attempting to disembark from a lift on Friday morning.

Local authorities and resort operators said her backpack became caught on a buckle attached to the lift carriage, leaving her suspended and dragged along the snow as the mechanism continued to move.

Resort staff activated an emergency stop and attended immediately, and emergency services transported Ms Day by ambulance after she went into cardiac arrest at the scene.

She was taken to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead later that day.

The company that operates the resort, Tsugaike Gondola Lift Co., expressed its deepest condolences to the family and pledged full cooperation with police and investigators reviewing the circumstances and safety protocols surrounding the accident.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra said it was providing consular assistance to Ms Day’s family and extended its sympathies at this difficult time.

Ms Day had been living and working in Japan, employed as a receptionist at a physiotherapy clinic in nearby Hakuba during the winter season.

Friends and community members described her as warm, sociable and passionate about life.

Tributes have also flowed from her local rugby community in Queensland, where she was remembered for her vibrant spirit and sporting achievements.

The tragedy has reverberated widely, prompting renewed scrutiny of lift safety procedures at ski resorts across the region as authorities continue their investigation.