Disrupted rail traffic in Hualien to partly resume Wednesday

Taipei, May 19 (CNA) Rail services in eastern Taiwan disrupted by a landslide on Sunday are expected to partially resume Wednesday, according to the state-run Taiwan Railway Corp.

The company said Monday that railway tracks between Heren and Chongde stations in Hualien's Xiulin Township sustained significant damage, particularly inside a tunnel, making both tracks currently unusable.

Taiwan Railway deputy general manager Chen Tsung-hung (陳宗宏) said one track is expected to reopen from the first train on Wednesday, while the other could be restored by Saturday if repair work proceeds smoothly.

The landslide occurred Sunday afternoon following heavy rainfall in the region, which came after the Central Weather Administration issued heavy rain advisories for 16 municipalities due to active convection.

According to Taiwan Railway, the affected section includes about 200 meters of damaged bridges and tracks, with approximately 3,000 square meters of track buried under mud and rocks, including 140 square meters inside the tunnel.

In addition, around 300 meters of main suspension wire and contact wire of the overhead catenary system were severed. Signal and communication fiber-optic cables, as well as the main power cable, were also damaged over a 300-meter area.

Chen noted that a pre-warning system helped mitigate the impact by alerting trains in the area to stop before reaching the affected site.

To relieve the disruption, Taiwan Railway deployed diesel multiple units (DMUs) to provide a shuttle service between Xincheng and Heping beginning at 5:32 a.m. Monday. As of 2 p.m., the service had transported 8,360 passengers over 17 trips.

A road shuttle service will also be available between Hualien and Heping from 8 p.m. to midnight, with scheduling adjustments depending on weather conditions, Chen said.