Review of Medical Response in 2015 TransAsia Airways Flight 235 Aircraft Crash

TransAsia Airways Flight 235 was a domestic flight that crashed into the Keelung River on February 4, 2015, about several minutes after take-off from Taipei Songshan Airport. There were 53 passengers and five crew members on board, however, only 15 of them survived. Twenty-seven casualties were sent to eight nearby hospitals. All of them were sent by ambulances of fire departments. Among 27 casualties, 10 experienced traumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and the remaining 17 had traumatic injuries or hypothermia. The accident revealed several important issues regarding disaster medical response in Taiwan. First, compared to previous aircraft crash accidents in Taiwan, the search and rescue process was much more difficult because the airplane had fallen into the middle of a river. It was much more like a river rescue than an aircraft crash. Responders could not reach the casualties and provide care initially due to lack of proper equipment needed to cross the river. Second, the airplane crashed right on the border between two cities, the ＂command and communication＂ issue was also confused in the beginning. Third, the role of the disaster medical assistant team (DMAT) in Taiwan should be re-evaluated, including various protocols and standard procedures for dispatch, task, cooperation, staff training and logistics. By reviewing the response, we hope we can improve our system for the challenges in the future.