Tourist in coma after Kinmen crash sent back to China for treatment

Taipei, Sept. 19 (CNA) A Chinese woman left in a coma after a traffic accident in outlying Kinmen County Thursday was transferred to Xiamen, China, for treatment Friday morning, according to Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF).

The woman, surnamed Xu (許), was taken on the first ferry to Xiamen at 8:30 a.m., with assistance from the SEF and the Red Cross of Kinmen County, the foundation said in a statement on Friday.

The SEF is a semi-official body responsible for managing cross-strait exchanges between Taiwan and China.

According to the foundation, Xu suffered severe head injuries while riding a rented "mini electric two-wheel vehicle" on Thursday afternoon when she was struck from behind by a driver, surnamed Lee (李).

It said that after the accident, she was sent to Kinmen Hospital, before her husband arrived from China Thursday night and decided to take her back for further treatment after consulting with doctors.

Kinmen County government official Chen Hsiang-lin (陳祥麟) told the media Friday that police have finished gathering evidence to determine responsibility, and Xu's family has agreed to return to Kinmen later to resolve compensation matters.

Under Taiwanese law, a mini electric two-wheel vehicle is a vehicle mainly powered by electricity with a factory-set maximum speed of 25 kilometers per hour.

Such vehicles can be operated without a license by anyone over the age of 14, provided the rider wears a helmet.