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At least 18 dead and 178 injured in Taiwan train derailment

Posted at 7:36 AM, Oct 21, 2018
and last updated 2018-10-21 14:47:15-04

At least 18 people have been killed and 178 others injured after a train derailed in Yilan County in northeastern Taiwan, according to an update from the island's transport ministry.

Initially, the ministry said 22 people died, but it later revised the number.

The train was traveling between the cities of Shulin and Taitung when it derailed Sunday on a coastal line reportedly popular with tourists.

The train was carrying 366 passengers when the accident occurred just before 5 pm local time, the transport ministry said.

All eight train carriages derailed in the incident, with five of these overturning, the ministry said.

A 43-year-old American woman was among those injured, according to the ministry. She has been sent to a local hospital, which said she suffered bruises.

The cause of the derailment is under investigation.