A woman was killed and 10 people were injured yesterday when a train on the Taichung MRT system hit a crane boom that had fallen onto the tracks.
The incident occurred at 12:29pm at the intersection of Wenxin S Fifth and Wenxin S roads in Nantun District (南屯), near the metro system’s Feng-le Park Station.
A 52-year-old woman surnamed Lin (林), an assistant professor in Providence University’s Department of Law, was found dead, Taichung Fire Bureau Sixth Corp Captain Pan Te-tsang (潘德倉) said.
Photo: CNA
The train ran into the crane boom lying on the rails after it fell more than 30 stories from a nearby construction site and pierced the MRT system’s sound insulation barriers.
Surveillance footage showed the boom falling from the nearly completed structure.
A section of the boom pierced the first car, separate footage taken inside the train showed.
Photo: CNA
The Taichung Fire Bureau transported people to hospitals for treatment for mostly minor injuries, the Taichung City Government said, adding that one of the injured people is Canadian.
The Taichung City Police Department implemented traffic restrictions in the area after the incident.
MRT services between Beitun Main Station and Taichung City Hall continued as usual, with dispatch buses shuttling passengers to and from the Jiuzhangli and High Speed Rail Taichung stations as Taichung Mass Rapid Transit Corp worked to restore full operations to the MRT line.
The Taichung Urban Development Bureau at 1:52pm ordered the immediate cessation of work at the construction site and launched an investigation into the cause of the incident.
Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) told reporters that the company in charge of the construction site, Highwealth Construction Co (興富發建設), would face a hefty fine if it is found to have failed to observe construction safety and the city government would demand compensation from it.
However, the city’s primary concern was to treat the injured passengers, Lu said.
Urban Development Bureau Director Lee Cheng-wei (李正偉) said that it fined the builder, the designer and the construction firm NT$270,000 each, citing contraventions of the Building Act (建築法).
Occupational Safety and Health Administration Director-General Lee Wen-chin (李文進) said that the builder faces a separate fine of NT$300,000 for failing to secure objects in contravention of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法).
Premier Chen Chien-en (陳建仁) asked the Ministry of Labor and the Taiwan Transportation Safety Board to look into the incident and provide the Taichung City Government with all necessary assistance to allow the MRT to resume normal operations as soon as possible, Executive Yuan spokesman Lo Ping-cheng (羅秉成) said.
Highwealth Construction, which dispatched the crew using the crane, said it regretted that its equipment and crew had been involved in an incident resulting in the loss of life.
It would not shy from any legal responsibility for the incident, the company said.
Authorities have detained three former Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TMSC, 台積電) employees on suspicion of compromising classified technology used in making 2-nanometer chips, the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office said yesterday. Prosecutors are holding a former TSMC engineer surnamed Chen (陳) and two recently sacked TSMC engineers, including one person surnamed Wu (吳) in detention with restricted communication, following an investigation launched on July 25, a statement said. The announcement came a day after Nikkei Asia reported on the technology theft in an exclusive story, saying TSMC had fired two workers for contravening data rules on advanced chipmaking technology. Two-nanometer wafers are the most
NEW GEAR: On top of the new Tien Kung IV air defense missiles, the military is expected to place orders for a new combat vehicle next year for delivery in 2028 Mass production of Tien Kung IV (Sky Bow IV) missiles is expected to start next year, with plans to order 122 pods, the Ministry of National Defense’s (MND) latest list of regulated military material showed. The document said that the armed forces would obtain 46 pods of the air defense missiles next year and 76 pods the year after that. The Tien Kung IV is designed to intercept cruise missiles and ballistic missiles to an altitude of 70km, compared with the 60km maximum altitude achieved by the Missile Segment Enhancement variant of PAC-3 systems. A defense source said yesterday that the number of
A bipartisan group of US representatives have introduced a draft US-Taiwan Defense Innovation Partnership bill, aimed at accelerating defense technology collaboration between Taiwan and the US in response to ongoing aggression by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The bill was introduced by US representatives Zach Nunn and Jill Tokuda, with US House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Chairman John Moolenaar and US Representative Ashley Hinson joining as original cosponsors, a news release issued by Tokuda’s office on Thursday said. The draft bill “directs the US Department of Defense to work directly with Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense through their respective
Tsunami waves were possible in three areas of Kamchatka in Russia’s Far East, the Russian Ministry for Emergency Services said yesterday after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit the nearby Kuril Islands. “The expected wave heights are low, but you must still move away from the shore,” the ministry said on the Telegram messaging app, after the latest seismic activity in the area. However, the Pacific Tsunami Warning System in Hawaii said there was no tsunami warning after the quake. The Russian tsunami alert was later canceled. Overnight, the Krasheninnikov volcano in Kamchatka erupted for the first time in 600 years, Russia’s RIA
RSS