On June 21, 2024, the New Tze-Chiang Express Train No.229 of Taiwan Railway Corporation, Ltd. (TRC) departed from Ruisui Station in Hualien County and was expected to head north to Shulin Station in New Taipei City. At 16:50, the train passed through the south entrance of the Xin-Heren tunnel in Hualien County and hit a landslide overflowing from the Daqingshui River onto the track. It caused the derailment of the 4th axle of the 1st car, all 4 axles of the 2nd car, and the 3rd axle of the 9th car. This accident resulted in injuries to the driver and 8 passengers.

Upon receiving notification of the occurrence, the Taiwan Transportation Safety Board (TTSB) immediately dispatched three investigators, with the personnel of the Railway Bureau, MOTC, and TRC, to the site to gather information in accordance with the procedures for investigating railway occurrences. This event was identified by the TTSB as a railway occurrence in accordance with the Transportation Occurrence Investigation Act. An official investigation has been launched and the investigation team will continue to gather relevant evidence.

Further information and progress of the occurrence investigation will be published on the TTSB website.

Vivi Yang, Secretariat Office
Tel: +886-2-7727-6217
E-mail: vivi2314@ttsb.gov.tw

Jason Hou, Investigator
Railway Occurrence Investigation Division
Tel: +886-2-7727-6261
E-mail: hcy@ttsb.gov.tw