Tourist, 55, in Taiwan turns back to oncoming train while taking photos, gets hit, breaks left foot

A tourist at Taiwan's Alishan Forest Railway was struck by a train while taking photos near the tracks with her back turned to an oncoming train on Dec. 14.

The 55-year-old woman, surnamed Liu, suffered a fractured left foot, according to Taiwan News, citing UDN.

Liu was part of a hiking group that had allegedly gone beyond the permitted area and onto the railway track, a popular spot for tourists to take pictures.

Reports indicated that she had either ignored or failed to heed the train’s warning horn as she was occupied and continued with her photo-taking.

Taking pictures

A video shared by China TV News showed Liu standing near the edge of the railway tracks, snapping away with her phone.

Despite the train’s horn sounding as a warning as it was passing through the area, the tourist remained in place.

Moments later, the train struck her from behind with force, causing her to fall to the ground as onlookers screamed in shock.

One woman could be heard saying off-camera: "Don't move".

This was likely in response to the fallen woman's precarious position, as she risked getting run over by the train.

Taken to hospital

Liu was transported by ambulance to a local hospital for treatment.

The incident also delayed the itinerary of the 62 passengers on board the train by about one hour.

Liu may face a fine of between NT$10,000 and NT$50,000 (S$415 to S$2,077) under the Railway Act for her actions.

Hiking group

The railway's investigation revealed that the hiking group was led onto the tracks by Dream Travel, a travel agency with a history of illegally guiding groups onto the forest railway tracks, according to the Central News Agency.

An official with the Alishan Forest Railway and Cultural Heritage Office disclosed that on Sep. 20 this year, the same agency was caught leading a group illegally along the Zhushan Line to the Mianyue Line.

Authorities are seeking penalties for the travel agency, including a proposal to the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency to suspend the agency’s applications for entry into the Alishan area via the Mianyue Line for one year.

In response, Dream Travel claimed that the tour group members had acted independently by walking onto the railway tracks to take photos.

It stated that the group was unsupervised and had not been warned about the dangers of being on the tracks, as reported by Taiwan News.

Chou told the Central News Agency that as of Dec. 15, the railway office had yet to hear directly from the travel agency.

Top photo from chen2_photography/Threads