TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Seven people were injured after a train hit fallen rocks and stopped inside a tunnel in Hualien County, reports said Friday (June 21).
The accident happened at 4:50 p.m. between Heren and Chongde, with the train stopping inside the Qingshui Tunnel to let passengers out. The EMU3000 Xin Tze Chiang No. 229 train had been traveling north from Ruisui, Hualien County, to Shulin, New Taipei City, per CNA.
After encountering the rockslide, the train stopped inside the tunnel, with the door and the second carriage falling off the rails. The driver had a broken hand, while six passengers were slightly injured.
All passengers walked along the track to be picked up by another train and were taken back to Chongde and Xincheng stations, the Taiwan Railway Corporation said. Traffic was still possible on a separate track for trains in both directions.
There were landslides and falling rocks in the wake of a magnitude 7.2 earthquake hit Hualien County on April 3 and during recent heavy rainfall.