Taroko Express Crash: Friends, family decry ‘lenient’ derailment charges
PREVENTABLE: One woman said that a charge of negligence resulting in death was not enough, as rail officials should have been called as soon as the truck slid onto the tracks
By Jason Pan / Staff reporter
Survivors and friends and family members of people who died in April 2’s train crash yesterday criticized the indictment of seven people over their alleged involvement in the incident as too lenient.
The Hualien District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday charged seven people over the crash, in which 49 people were killed and more than 200 were injured.
TRA trains mourn deaths of two drivers
REFORM: Premier Su Tseng-chang vowed to accelerate changes in the TRA, including installing smart surveillance systems to detect track intrusions and improve safety
By Lee Hsing Fang, Wang Chun-chi and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporters, staff writer, with CNA
Trains across the nation sounded their horns simultaneously yesterday morning to pay tribute to two train drivers killed in last week’s Taroko Express crash, while the Executive Yuan vowed to speed up reform of the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA).
More than 120 TRA trains sounded their horns at 9:28am yesterday the time when Taroko Express No. 408 hit a crane truck as it was about to enter the Cingshuei Tunnel (清水隧道) in Hualien’s Sioulin Township (秀林) to mourn the deaths of driver Yuan Chun-hsiu (袁淳修) and assistant driver Chiang Pei-feng (江沛峰).
April 06, 2021
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In the final moments of his life, train driver Yuan Chun-hsiu was determined to keep his passengers safe.
Seconds before the train crashed into a construction truck on the railway track, the 33-year-old slammed on the brakes and sounded the horn in order to reduce the damage from the collision, EBC News reported.
Yuan, along with his colleague Chiang Pei-feng, 32, died in the crash that took place in Hualien, Taiwan, on April 2 morning. 50 were confirmed dead and over 200 were injured in the express train service carrying nearly 500 passengers and crew.
With the truck only 250m away, Yuan did not have enough time or distance for an emergency brake to avoid a collision.
Train Derails in Taiwan Leaves at Least 51 Dead and Dozens Injured
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An express passenger train carrying 496 passengers derailed after colliding with a truck killing 51 and injuring at least 146. The Taiwan Railway Administration reports the worst train accident in decades occurred near Chongde, Hualien, on Saturday, April 2, 2021, reports the South China Morning Post.
The Taroko Express was traveling to Taitung from New Taipei City when the accident happened at about 9:30 a.m. local time (9:30 p.m. ET April 1). The eight-car train was about to enter the Chingshui Tunnel when it hit the truck.
Two of the carriages derailed, forcing parts of the truck into the tunnel, killing the engineer and mechanic on impact 33-year-old Yuan Chun-hsiu and 32-year-old Chiang Pei-feng. Several of the following cars slammed into the tunnel walls crushing them; those at the end were less damaged, according to Feng Hui-sheng, the deputy director of the Taiwan Railway Admin