Passengers on train No. 229 leave Qingshui Tunnel Friday afternoon. Photo courtesy of a private contributor June 21, 2024

Hualien, June 21 (CNA) A train ran into rocks on the tracks after an apparent landslide near the Heren section of Hualien at around 5 p.m. Friday afternoon, causing seven injuries, according to internal Taiwan Railway Corp. (TR) reports.

The train operator reported that the driver of train No. 229, an EMU3000 Tze-Chiang Limited Express, suffered a fractured hand and six passengers were injured but not seriously.

The train is currently stuck inside Qingshui Tunnel, with the door of the first car misaligned and the second car derailed.

The TR said that at 4:50 p.m., the train collided with a landslide inside Qingshui Tunnel between Chongde and Heren on the west main line.

The train operator estimates there were about 500 passengers on board who were helped off the train and transported back to Hualien station after personnel were dispatched to the site within 20 minutes of the incident.

A passenger surnamed Chen (陳) in the fifth car said the collision was very loud, louder than a typical car crash.

Some passengers in the car were injured, but fortunately, a doctor was on board and provided assistance, Chen added.

A passenger in the third car said that after the collision, the train made an emergency stop inside the tunnel.

During the evacuation, the passenger saw medical personnel moving towards the first and second cars, and debris from the train scattered on the ground.