Taiwanese authorities have requested an arrest warrant for the driver of a construction vehicle believed to be the cause of a train derailment that killed at least 50 people.
The Taroko Express was carrying nearly 500 people to the east coast of the island on Friday, the first day of a religious festival, when families gather to honor their ancestors, when it crashed into a tunnel just outside the city of Hualien.
Police believe the train hit a truck that had slipped on an embankment on a rail maintenance site. The front wagons of the train derailed and piled up inside the tunnel, becoming crushed by the walls, splitting and breaking.
Dozens were killed, including the 33-year-old train driver, an assistant driver, a six-year-old girl and a French citizen. More than 70 people were trapped inside for hours, while other survivors smashed the windows and crawled along the roof of the train to escape.
The driver of the truck was not in it when he slipped, and the police suspected that he was “parked improperly”. He was questioned at a hearing on Friday afternoon, and Hualien Prosecutor Yu Hsiu-duan later told reporters that an arrest warrant had been requested.
“In order to keep the relevant evidence, we have several groups of prosecutors on the spot and they are looking for the necessary places,” Yu said.
The prosecutor’s office confirmed that it had interviewed the truck driver, among other things, but was not prepared to file charges. Prosecutor’s staff visit a mortuary on Saturday to examine the bodies, said Chou Fang-yi, a spokesman for the office.
About 150 people were injured in the accident, and 48 people were pronounced dead at the scene. Two of the injured later died in hospital. On Saturday morning, 40 people remained in hospital, four of them in intensive care. Authorities said on Saturday that 496 people were on board, including four railway staff, 372 seated passengers and 120 standing passengers.
Authorities warned that the death toll could rise as parts of the body were not yet properly identified. A rescuer at the crash site also said they were not sure if there could be more bodies in the wrecked wagons trapped inside the tunnel.
A Red Cross Society rescuer told local media that the arrival scene was “like a living hell” and suggested that a number of children and infants were among the dead.
“The chairs were abused, objects were scattered all over the floor and blood was everywhere,” Lin Chi-feng told CNA.
“It was heartbreaking to see so many children and babies die in the accident,” he said.
Taiwan train crash map
All survivors were released from the wreckage by Friday afternoon, and rescue crews began clearing the rear wagons on Saturday, but the damaged wagons remained trapped inside the tunnel. Railway authorities said it would take another week to clear the site and resume services.
The Taiwanese government has ordered all flags to be lowered to half a mast for three days to honor the victims of the worst rail disaster to hit the island in decades. On Saturday, President Tsai Ing-wen visits injured survivors in hospitals.