7 injured as students cycling around Taiwan hit by car in Changhua

Taipei, April 22 (CNA) Seven students were injured, one seriously, after members of their group, which was cycling around Taiwan, were struck by a car driving on the wrong side of the road in Changhua County on Tuesday.

The Changhua County Fire Bureau said it received a report at 10:43 a.m. Tuesday that multiple cyclists had been injured by a car on Changshui Road in Changhua's Pitou Township.

Upon arriving at the scene, first responders found a small sedan on the wrong side of the road with its windshield partially imploded, while several bikes lay smashed and tangled on the road in front of it, the bureau said.

Seven students from the group of cyclists were taken to the hospital for injuries ranging from cuts and bruises to broken bones. One of the seven, a 15-year-old boy, suffered severe head injuries and was taken to Changhua Christian Hospital.

The boy was assessed to have a GCS score of 3, indicating that he is in a deep coma and completely unresponsive. He will be given a CT scan before being transferred into the ICU for treatment, the hospital said.

The driver also suffered head injuries in the crash, apparently from hitting the windshield, authorities said.

Based on a preliminary investigation, the driver who hit the students appears to have fallen asleep at the wheel and veered into oncoming traffic, the Changhua Police Department's Beidou Precinct said.

The driver -- who several local news outlets identified as a 40-year-old man surnamed Hsiao (蕭) -- did not have any alcohol in his system, police said.

A witness of the crash said the car had been driving on the wrong side of the road for around 100 meters, before crashing into the students head-on "like a bowling ball," apparently without hitting the brakes, the Chinese-language United Daily News reported.

According to the police, the group of cyclists included 28 students from Kang Chiao International School in New Taipei, as well as two teachers and one guide.

The son of Taipei 101 Chairperson Janet Chia (賈永婕) was one of the cyclists on the trip, but was not injured, Chia confirmed in a statement to the media.

On Tuesday afternoon, Kang Chiao International School said its principal was en route to Changhua to visit the injured students, and that its teachers and administrators were providing emotional support to students distressed by the crash.