Witness says metro train was stopped when crane fell onto tracks: train then drove into it

A Canadian man who was aboard a Taichung metro train when one person was killed, and eight were injured in an accident, Wednesday, May 10, says that the train was stopped at a station when the crane boom fell onto the tracks.

The man, who is unnamed in media reports, and described as a foreign English teacher, gave a doorstop interview as he stepped out of a hospital where he was treated for an abrasion to his head suffered when, according to his testimony, the train he was travelling on slammed into the boom-arm of a construction crane that had fallen onto the metro tracks.

“We were stopped at the station, the doors were still open, and we saw the crane hit, ‘boom!'” he told reporters.

Emphasizing again that the train was stopped at the station, and describing the astonishment of passengers witnessing the crane hitting the tracks in a cloud of smoke, he then describes the shocked realization dawning on the passengers as the doors begin to close and the train starts to move forward.

“The doors on the train start closing, and the guy on the side’s going no, no, no, don’t go.”

“But the train starts moving anyway, and we drove right into the wreckage.”

“So for whatever reason, the train was stopped when we saw the accident. The train was stopped but the train started going anyway… for whatever reason, I don’t know. I’m not from here.”

As the Canadian started moving towards a waiting taxi, a reporter asked him about his injury.

Pointing to the bandage on the right side of his forehead, the Canadian said dismissively, “I play hockey, this is nothing.”

Main picture: Taichung City Mayor Lu Shiow-yen checks on injured passengers after metro accident. Source: Taichung City Government.

Taiwan English News is an independent publication with no corporate funding. If you found this article informative, and would like to support my work, please buy me a coffee or support me on Patreon. Subscribe to Taiwan English News for free to receive the latest news via email. Advertising queries are welcome. Share, like, comment below.