According to Xinhua News Agency on April 3, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee Xi Jinping is highly concerned about the major casualties caused by the Taiwan train derailment on April 2, and expressed deep condolences to the victims, sincere condolences to the families of the victims and the injured, and wish the injured a speedy recovery.
Nandu reporters learned that at around 11:00 on April 3, the Taiwan Railway held another press conference on the Taroko 408 accident. Wang Guocai, the relevant person in charge of the transportation department in Taiwan, said at the meeting that as of 10:00 on April 3, the accident had killed 50 people, including drivers and driver assistants, injured 178 people, and 40 people are still in hospital.
At present, the rescue work has been temporarily over. According to the on-site report, no one was trapped after a second search on the evening of the 2nd. On the 3rd, a large crane arrived at the site early in the morning and lifted the trains on the track to carry out the operation.
Railway press conference: There is no surveillance at the scene of the incident. construction vehicle wreckage . Whether there is a handbrake
On the morning of April 3, Wang Guocai said at a press conference that the 408th Taroko hit the construction vehicle at 9:28 on the 2nd, and the surveillance and recording device could not be found on the site. However, at 9:13 that day, a train of Ziqiang No. 204 to Hualien passed, so it means that the construction vehicle was sliding down to the track between 13 and 28 minutes.
Regarding the identification of the body, the head of the Taiwan legal department said that the prosecutor and forensic doctor have initially completed the inspection of all 50 bodies, and 44 victims have been identified. Six victims have not found identifiable documents or information at the scene, or their families have not yet come forward, so their identities have not been determined. DNA comparison or family identification is still needed.
Regarding the construction progress of the site, Wang Guocai said that the engineering team entered the site to repair it at 21:30 on April 2. At present, the first and second vehicles have been towed away, but the track where the third vehicle is located is 100 meters damaged, and it will be very serious before it can be disengaged after repair.
On the evening of April 2, Feng Huisheng, deputy director of the Taiwan Railway Bureau, explained the cause of the accident initially identified, and said that the safety protection project of the outer slope of the Taiwan Railway Bureau commissioned the K51+170~500 mountain side slope. The construction site director of the construction manufacturer Dongxin Construction Company drove a truck to inspect the construction site at about 9 am and parked the truck in front of the work office. It was suspected that the truck slipped 20 meters from the parking area because the handbrake was not tightened, and it slipped to about K51+250 of the East Main Line of the North Tropic on the track. At 9:28 am on the 2nd, it was hit by the Taroko 408 times. For detailed reasons, the Yunxiao Association has joined hands with the Railway Bureau to investigate on site.
The transportation safety committee pointed out that it is necessary to understand further in the future. Yang Hongzhi, the person in charge, said that no weather factors were seen on the scene, and human and mechanical factors would be investigated. Mechanical factors may include the handbrake of the construction vehicle. Whether it is not pulled or pulled at all, but the brake system is not in place can be judged from the vehicle wreckage.
According to CCTV reports, the person in charge of the manufacturer suspected of being involved in the accident has been taken back to investigate by Hualien police. The Hualien District Prosecutor's Office has sent an investigation team to the scene to find out the cause of the accident. The cause of the incident should be related to slope protection engineers. Taiwan's transportation department said that Taiwan Railway has sent personnel to condolences to the injured and the families of the victims one by one.
Historical Accidents: Taiwan Railway At least 10 casualties in the past 40 years accidents
After the accident, the Taiwan Railway Trade Union pointed out that in 2019 alone, there were as many as 41 damage caused by external vehicles and external objects, calling on the authorities to make up their minds to improve the problem of invasion of the Taiwan Railway Line and hope that unfortunate incidents will not happen again. A reporter from Nandu sorted out the historical accident records of Taiwan Railway and found that in the past 40 years, Taiwan Railway has suffered at least 10 casualties.
On March 8, 1981, the Taiwan Railway 1002 Ziqiang Express collided with a gravel truck that broke through the level crossing at that time between Toutunxi Bridge between Zhubei Station in Hsinchu. The train derailed, and 30 passengers died and 130 injured.
On November 15, 1991, the Taiwan Railway 1006 Ziqiang and the Juguang 1, which went south, collided at Hazhi Station 134 kilometers north of Zaoqiao Station, killing 30 and injuring 117.
On March 10, 2006, Taiwan Railway 1073rd Ziqiang No. 1,073 was used to carry out road maintenance on some sections of the Norte Tropical Road. When passing through the southern end of Chongde Station without warning, five workers were hit on the rail construction at high speed, causing 5 deaths on the spot.
On June 15, 2007, a driver of a trial train from Taiwan Railway continued to drive at high speed. He did not find any obstacle signal from the Dali Station entering the station. He was unable to take emergency measures and had an accident with the 2719th train. Caused 5 deaths and 18 injuries.
On January 17, 2012, the 278th Taroko of Taiwan Railway collided with a gravel truck crossing the level crossing at the Xingfu Cement Plant south of the Puxin Station of the Taiwan Railway Line. The brakes were not enough, the first three carriages derailed, the front of the train was completely destroyed, the train driver died, 22 passengers on the train were slightly injured and 1 seriously injured (including the train commander).
On August 31, 2013, when the 302 Ziqiang train from Taitung to Xinzuoying passed through Fangye to the entrance of Fangshan No. 2 Tunnel in Jialujian, the train derailed due to heavy rain and earth and rock flow, and 17 people were injured.
On July 7, 2016, the NTZ 1258 section train (from Hsinchu to Keelung) exploded in the 6th carriage before entering Songshan Station, causing 24 passengers to be injured.
On October 21, 2018, a 6432 Puyouma train from Shulin to Taitung was passing through Xinma Station, causing five carriages to overturn, 18 passengers died and 290 injured.
On February 23, 2021, an occupational safety accident occurred at the Taitung Haiduan Station of Taiwan Railway. After the turnout replacement project was completed, three maintenance workers were hit by 8,742 times (electric repair vehicles), causing 2 deaths and 1 injury.
On April 2, 2021, the Taroko train 408 derailed in the Daqingshui Tunnel in Hualien County. As of 10:00 on April 3, the accident had killed 50 people, including drivers and driver assistants, injured 178, and 40 were still in hospital.
Interview and writing: Intern Zhou Lingqian Nandu reporter Lin Zipei
