Shocking moment Taiwan train derails killing 18 and injuring 187 people

This is the horrifying moment a train derails in Taiwan, killing at least 18 and injuring over 100.

The eight car express train ran off the tracks on a bend where the maximum speed is 47 miles per hour.

It had been carrying more than 360 passengers on a popular weekend route from a suburb of Taipei in the north to Taitung, a city on Taiwan’s southeast coast.

It was the worst train crash in Taiwan for nearly three decades.

In the footage, the train can be seen striking and toppling a beam and ripping down metal structures from above the tracks.

Eighteen people were killed and 187 were injured. Five of the people killed, including a 9-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl, belonged to a single family.

Three students and two teachers who died were from the same middle school.

Some passengers were crushed to death, Ministry of National Defence spokesman Chen Chung-chi said.

The speed at which the train was travelling has not been released due to a pending investigation however it has not been ruled out as the cause.

Passengers told Taiwan’s Central News Agency that the driver applied emergency brakes multiple times before the train derailed.

One local told television reporters the train sped up after taking the curve.

Taiwan’s president Tsai Ing-wen has called for a quick, transparent probe into the cause of the crash.

In a statement she said: “Everyone cares a lot about the cause of the accident. Therefore we request that the investigating departments must as soon as possible make clear the timing and situation of the whole accident from start to finish and be able to give citizens a report.”

The train that derailed had its most recent inspection and major maintenance work in 2017, Taiwan Railways Director Lu Chieh-shen said Sunday at a televised news conference.

Mr Lu offered to resign Monday. It's not yet certain if his offer would be accepted or if he would be asked to stay as the investigation continues.