Fourth-grade students from Anqing Elementary School in Tainan City were on a group outdoor educational trip to Leofoo Village Theme Park yesterday, traveling in seven tour buses. While ascending a steep slope in Jiaokeng Township’s Jiaojiao Village, the driver of the last bus allegedly pressed the accelerator too hard, causing a rear-end collision with the two buses ahead. The children screamed in fright, and nine of them suffered bruises and were sent to hospitals. County Magistrate Su Chih-fen rushed to the emergency rooms to check on them, but fortunately, none of the nine sustained serious injuries.
Principal Huang Chun-chieh of Anqing Elementary School in Tainan City said that the school’s sixth-grade graduation trip and fourth-grade outdoor class were both scheduled to meet up at Leofoo Village yesterday. The fourth graders were traveling in seven buses. Yesterday morning, while ascending a steep slope in Jiaokeng Township’s Jiaojiao Village, the seventh bus suddenly rear-ended the sixth and fifth buses.
Due to the sudden impact, nine children hit their chair backs and fell. Six were taken to Cheng Kung University Douliu Branch Hospital, and three were sent to National Taiwan University Yunlin Branch Hospital’s emergency room. Fortunately, they only suffered bruises on the cheeks, chest, abdomen, and lips. They were discharged one after another in the afternoon, except for the child with an abdominal bruise who remained under observation until the evening.
Huang Chun-chieh said that shortly after the accident, TV stations reported a collision involving three of the school’s buses, prompting a flood of concerned calls to the school. In reality, since no one was seriously hurt, all seven buses continued their journey. The frightened children, after lying in the emergency room for an hour, were full of energy again and begged their teachers to let them go back and play with their classmates—but Huang Nai-chin, director of the Cheng Kung University Douliu Branch Hospital’s emergency room, did not grant permission. After visiting the children, Magistrate Su Chih-fen comforted them and instructed the education department to treat each child to a plate of spaghetti.