American college student fatally hit by truck in New Taipei

美國大學生在新北市遭卡車撞死

Bystander says victim pushed signal button, waited for green light before crossing street


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The young man who was fatally hit by a truck on Sunday evening (June 25) has been identified as an American college student who was spending his summer vacation in Taiwan.

At 8 p.m. on Sunday, a yellow tow truck driven by a 34-year-old man surnamed Chang (張) hit and killed a 20-year-old man surnamed Men (門) at the intersection of Shuiyang Road and Chenggong Road in New Taipei City's Sanchong District. The victim's uncle said his nephew was born in the U.S., enrolled at the University of Washington, just completed his sophomore year, and was spending his summer vacation in Taiwan, per ETtoday.

The young man was on his way to New Taipei Metropolitan Park to exercise before he was hit by the truck, according to his uncle. He called his nephew "very well-behaved and law-abiding."

After visiting the scene of the accident, the uncle said the location where his nephew's body lay was at least 15 steps from the zebra crossing. There was a pool of blood on the ground, which showed the strong force of the truck's impact.

All traffic signals were functioning properly, according to the uncle. He said the green light would not turn on until the red light for oncoming traffic was already off for three seconds.

The victim's uncle believes the driver of the truck did not slow down or stop, as there were no skid marks on the road to indicate signs of braking. "Raising a child is difficult, but it only took a moment for a life to be lost. I hope that traffic law enforcement will become stricter to ensure the safety of pedestrians," he said.

After the incident, the victim's uncle went to the police station to file a report, where he encountered the driver. "He (Chang) just glanced at me and then turned his eyes away. I can't accept the attitude of the perpetrator at all. It feels like it was as if he had not done anything at all," he said.

The victim's parents live in the U.S. and, after receiving the bad news, rushed to book a flight to Taiwan. They are expected to arrive at Taoyuan Airport on Tuesday to deal with their son's funeral arrangements.

In addition, a bystander surnamed Ting (丁) who was standing behind the victim at the light said that he was also nearly hit by the truck, reported ETtoday. Ting said he saw the victim press the crosswalk button and wait for the light to turn green before proceeding to cross.

The driver said that on the night of the accident, he had been dispatched to tow a stalled vehicle on Ganyuan Street in Shulin District. He said the traffic signal was yellow, and he was unable to swerve his truck out of the way when the victim suddenly appeared in front of him.

He said he got out of the truck immediately to check on the victim, while a passerby dialed 119. According to the driver, the truck was old, and the dashcam failed to record the accident.

The driver said he was sorry for what happened, and he had kneeled down to apologize to the victim's family.