Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
The government of Honduras, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has her solidarity and condolences to the people of the Republic of China (Taiwan) for the unfortunate railway accident that took place in the east of that country on Friday, which left more than 50 people died and dozens injured.
The people and government of Honduras also convey their regret to the families and friends of the fatalities and wish for the speedy recovery of the injured. Likewise, they express their solidarity with the emergency forces caring for the victims of the unfortunate accident. . caused by the collision between a high-speed train carrying about 500 passengers at the time and a truck that had entered the railway line, “the Chancellery
“My condolences to our brothers from Taiwan, Bandera de Taiwan, for such an irreparable loss and I wish a speedy recovery for the injured,” said the Honduran foreign minister on his social networks. Lisandro Rosales. Placeholder image
At least 51 people were killed when a train collided with a vehicle on the track and derailed in a tunnel, the most serious train accident on the island in decades.
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Authorities said the collision was caused by a maintenance vehicle slipping off an embankment on the track near the eastern coastal town of Hualien.
“It is suspected that the driver did not pull the handbrake enough, causing the vehicle to slide 20 meters to the track,” Deputy Director of the Taiwan Railway Authority, Feng Hui-sheng, told reporters.
Local media photos taken on the spot showed the rear of an overturned yellow low-loader by the train. According to the Taiwan Railway Agency, 146 passengers were taken to hospital and 51 people, including a French citizen, died, while two Japanese and a resident of Macau were injured.
The President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen visited an emergency center in the capital Taipei and said what happened will be investigated. “Of course we will clarify the cause of the incident that caused so many victims,” he told reporters.
“I hope the deceased rest in peace and that the injured recover quickly,” the official added. The images published by the local media UDN showed that the front part of the train in the tunnel had been destroyed.
The Taiwanese Red Cross has also released footage of lifeguards wearing helmets and flashlights walking into the tunnel on the roof of the wrecked train to reach the survivors.
“Sudden violent shaking”
The passengers in the back of the convoy escaped the accident unharmed. “I felt like there had been a sudden violent shock and fell to the floor,” a woman told the television network. “We broke the window to get on the roof of the train and get out.”
This eight-car train, carrying about 480 passengers, was on its way from Taipei to the city of Taitung, in the southeast of the island. Rescue workers worked for hours to rescue the passengers trapped in the tunnel and get them out.
In mid-afternoon, authorities indicated that no one had been left in the cars, although there were dozens of rescuers on site, according to AFP reporters.
Holiday weekend
The accident coincides with the start of the annual festival of grave cleaning, a long holiday weekend that fills the country’s roads and railways.
During this period, the inhabitants generally return to their hometown to clean the graves of their relatives and to make offerings. Taiwan’s Eastern Railway is often a tourist draw as it runs along the beautiful and less populated east coast.
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It winds through multiple tunnels and bridges through mountains and spectacular gorges before descending through the Huadong Valley. Friday’s accident is one of Taiwan’s worst railway disasters on record.
The last major derailment dates back to 2018, when 18 people died on the south side of the same line. The driver of that eight-car train was subsequently charged with negligent murder, more than 200 of the 366 passengers were injured.
This accident was the worst since 1991 when 30 passengers were killed and 112 injured in the collision of two trains at Miaoli. According to the Apple Daily newspaper, the worst accident on the island was in 1948, killing 64 people.