Two rail workers killed, one injured after being hit by locomotive
Two railway maintenance workers died, and another was seriously injured, after they were hit by a maintenance vehicle in Taitung County this morning, February 23.
The three men were replacing a switch on tracks around one kilometer from Haiduan Train Station in Guanshan Township when they were hit by an electric maintenance vehicle being driven by a trainee driver at 8:35 am, according to reports.
The three injured workers were rushed to Guanshan Tzu Chi Hospital, but two were pronounced dead after arrival, Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported.
The two deceased, a 48-year-old man named Pan, and a 55-year-old man named Liu, had suffered severe skull injuries. The injured, a man named Wang, 36, suffered from a facial fracture. Wang has recovered consciousness, and was transferred to Taitung Mackay Memorial Hospital, according to United Daily News.
According to the Taiwan Railways, a total of 5 trains from Taitung to Hualien were stopped from 9 am to 12 noon this morning, and 4 trains from Hualien to Taitung were delayed, affecting around 900 passengers. Railway traffic resumed at around 12 noon.
The Taiwan Railway Administration stated that a response team was established immediately after the accident was reported. The labor safety office and National Transportation Safety Investigation Commission have begun an investigation into the incident.
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