Taiwan tourists killed by falling rocks

Three tourists from Taiwan were killed by falling rocks at a scenic area in central China’s Hubei Province yesterday, local authorities said.

The accident happened at 9:45am in Yichang, when a group of 45 people organized by a Taiwan travel agency were at the Three Gorges tourist attraction on the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. The victims were two men and one woman.

Two others were taken to a local hospital for treatment to their injuries, Hubei’s Taiwan Affairs Office said. 

The scenic area has been closed and the cause of the accident is under investigation.

Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesman for the State Council’s Taiwan Affairs Office, said the office offered its condolences to the families of the victims.

The Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits and the Association for Tourism Exchange Across the Taiwan Straits are sending a task force to Hubei to assist, Ma said.