The extent of the damage is unknown as a train derailed with 350 passengers in Taiwan on Good Friday. At least 36 people have been killed and about 70 are trapped in the rubble, Reuters reports.
An express train derailed Friday morning local time in a subway in eastern Taiwan. According to local police, a truck that fell off the road may have triggered the crash.
“We are working to clarify the course of events,” said local police chief Sai Ding-hsien, according to Reuters.
The train veered out of a tunnel and struck an oncoming vehicle. Eight passenger cars reportedly collided with several tunnel walls Reuters.
– A male passenger on Taiwan TV says that our train collided with a truck.
The country’s transport ministry says at least 36 people are dead and about 70 are still in critical condition News agency Reuters reports.
“Recovering those trapped is now our priority,” said Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. BBC.
According to reports, 61 people have been brought to 61 local hospitals Taiwan News.
According to News agency A.P. There must have been 350 passengers on board. It was the worst train accident on the island in at least four decades.
The entire train was traveling from Shulin in New Taipei to Taitung, which derailed in a tunnel north of Julian. Several of the eight vehicles are said to have hit the wall in the tunnel.
– Suddenly, violently stupid, I fell to the ground. UTN, an unidentified female television channel, said we smashed windows to climb onto the roof of the car.
According to CNN Between 80 and 100 people were rescued from the first four carriages of the train. The channel writes that the last four were severely beaten and it was difficult to get to the rescue troops.
The front of the Taroko Express is just outside the subway.
According to the railway administration, most of the dead have been found in the last two trains. About 70 passengers were trapped in the rubble.
It is not clear what caused the crash, but local media write that the incorrectly parked truck may have rolled off a steep slope and left tracks.
Construction work is underway on a motorway running parallel to the railway. Pictures of the fire service show the wreckage of a construction vehicle lying near the train.
The accident happened at the start of a weekend. Taiwanese travel to visit the graves of friends and family and to sacrifice their spirits.
The mountain east coast of Taiwan is a popular tourist destination. The railway from Taipei became famous for its mines where the accident occurred.
In 2018, 18 people were killed and 175 injured when a train derailed in northeastern Taiwan. In 1981, a train collision in northern Taiwan killed 30 people and injured 112, Reuters reported.
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