67-year-old S’porean tourist hit by bus while crossing road in Taiwan, suffers multiple fractures

Singaporean tourist hit by bus at intersection in Taiwan

A 67-year-old Singaporean woman was critically injured after a bus struck her at a road junction in Taiwan on Wednesday (16 Sept).

The tourist became trapped beneath the vehicle’s front-right wheel and was rushed to hospital after rescuers freed her.

Tourist struck while crossing road

The collision happened at about 11.11am at the junction of Minsheng Road and Ziyou Road in Taichung’s West District.

The Kuo-Kuang Motor Transport bus, driven by a 45-year-old man surnamed Gong, was travelling along Minsheng Road and turning right onto Ziyou Road when it hit the woman, who was on the pedestrian crossing at the time.

United Daily News reported that surveillance footage from the junction captured the bus moving slowly as it made the turn before striking her.

An eyewitness similarly told the publication that the vehicle appeared to be travelling at a low speed.

Moments later, people nearby began screaming after the woman was struck and became trapped beneath the front-right wheel.

Rescuers free woman from beneath bus

Emergency personnel were dispatched after authorities received a report about the collision.

Firefighters used lifting equipment to raise part of the bus before freeing the woman with the help of a long backboard.

She suffered open fractures to her right upper arm and left lower limb, as well as a fractured pelvis.

The woman was also in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), with no breathing or pulse detected when rescuers attended to her.

Paramedics administered emergency treatment, including bleeding control and fracture immobilisation, before taking her to China Medical University Hospital.

Her vital signs subsequently returned while she was being transported, and she remained in hospital for treatment.

Driver says he did not see woman before impact

According to Mirror Daily, Mr Gong said he had stopped before turning as several pedestrians were crossing the road.

He claimed that he stopped twice, carried out the required visual checks, and only proceeded after he believed the crossing was clear.

Mr Gong said the woman’s relatives had already made it to the opposite side of the road before the collision.

Some of them appeared to be calling out to her, and speculated that she may have hurried across in an attempt to catch up.

The woman may also have assumed that the stationary bus was waiting to let her pass.

Mr Gong said that after the front of the bus had crossed the pedestrian crossing, he suddenly heard people screaming and felt that one of the wheels had gone over something.

He immediately braked and applied the handbrake before getting out to check, at which point he realised that the woman was trapped beneath the vehicle.

Mr Gong maintained that the bus had been moving slowly and said its onboard recording system could help police establish what happened.

Police investigating cause and liability

Mr Gong tested negative for alcohol and drugs.

Highway Bureau records showed that he had driven for five hours and four minutes that day, after driving for four hours and 46 minutes the previous day. He had also been off work from 9 to 14 Sept.

Police have contacted Singapore’s representative office to assist the woman’s family, and traffic at the junction has since returned to normal.

Investigators are reviewing footage from the bus and nearby surveillance cameras to determine how the collision happened.

The cause of the accident and any legal responsibility remain under investigation.

Also read: Tour bus from S’pore to KL overturns on M’sia expressway, elderly S’porean among 3 injured

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Featured image adapted from Mirror Daily.