TAIPEI: At least 17 people were dead and 132 others injured after a train derailed on Taiwan's east coast on Sunday afternoon (Oct 21), authorities said.
The train, Puyuma Express 6432, was travelling from Taitung and derailed near Yilan county near the coast, on a railway popular among tourists.
Advertisement
Authorities have not confirmed if any passengers remain trapped alive inside the train. An AFP reporter at the scene said that more bodies were being brought out of the wrecked carriages.
"As of 6.30pm there are 17 dead on site and 126 people injured," the Taiwan Railways Administration said in a statement, adding that the train had been moving between two stations in Yilan County before the derailment occurred.
Images from the site showed the high-speed Puyuma Express train completely derailed and lying zig-zagged across the track.
Taiwan's central government said that rescue services were at the scene and that the premier had been notified; he was said to be "highly concerned" about the safety of the travelers.
Advertisement
Advertisement
All of the train's eight carriages had derailed and five had flipped onto their side at Xinma station, the railways administration said.
The railways administration said there had been 366 people on board the service.
Taiwan's Central News Agency reported that more than 30 people were still trapped in the train early on Sunday evening.
The defence ministry said it had sent in 120 soldiers to help the rescue.
President Tsai Ing-wen described the accident as a "major tragedy" in a Tweet Sunday evening.
"My thoughts are with all the victims and their families," she added.
A train heading from Taipei to Hualien derailed near Yilang county. 3 dead so far, 20 injured. I am on a delayed train heading towards Taipei in the opposite direction. https://t.co/I88pDyHt8x pic.twitter.com/Swl1NHo4ou — mrbrown (@mrbrown) October 21, 2018
Singaporean blogger Mr Brown tweeted that he was at the scene of the derailment, in a train heading in the opposite direction towards Taipei.
There have been several incidents of train derailments in Taiwan in recent years.
In March this year, a carriage of a train on its way to Taipei derailed inside Shulin station in New Taipei City. No injuries were reported.
In October last year, 300 passengers had to disembark onto the tracks after their train bound for Shulin from Taitung derailed in Hualien county.
In June 2016, several people were injured when a train derailed in Hualien county.
Around 200 passengers were on board when the incident happened, and two people were taken to the hospital.
This story is developing. Refresh for updates.
At around 4:50 p.m. local time (0850 UTC) on Sunday, at least eighteen passengers were killed and, by varying reports, more than another 170 injured after a train derailed in  in northeast Taiwan. It was the most deaths in a train crash in Taiwan in 27 years. The  was transporting 366 people when the accident occurred, according to the railways administration. On Sunday authorities said an investigation was underway to determine the cause of the incident.
Evacuation through a window at 18:16.
Photo of the train wreck at 18:21. 

Traveling between  and , the train's eight carriages derailed around Xinma station.

According to Associated Press, locals assisted passengers to escape through the windows of the train before the emergency response team arrived. Emergency workers and roughly 120 soldiers worked to free survivors from the wreckage.

Injured passengers were transported to four different hospitals for treatment, ''The New York Times'' reported.

The train's conductor, according to , reported some sort of object was on the tracks and might have derailed the train. Transport ministry officials said on Monday the train driver had reported abnormally low pressure in the brakes of the train 20 minutes before the crash.

This incident exceeded the fatality count of seventeen in a train derailing at ,  in 2003. Previously 30 passengers died and 112 were injured as a result of a train collision in  in 1991.



== Sources == 
*
*
*
*