Heath Ledger's father said his son's death by accidental overdose will be an enduring agony for the family and should serve as a warning to others not to mix prescription drugs.
The New York City medical examiner announced on Wednesday that the 28-year-old Brokeback Mountain star died from the effects of taking six types of painkillers and sedatives. His body was found on Jan. 22 in his Manhattan apartment.
Ledger's premature death promoted outpourings of grief from New York to Hollywood to his hometown of Perth, a small and remote city on the verge of the Outback in Australia's southwest.
Family members returned home from the US this week and were reportedly planning a private service to lay Ledger to rest. His former girlfriend, Michelle Williams, and the couple's two-year-old daughter Matilda arrived on Wednesday to attend the ceremony, News Ltd newspapers said.
The West Australian newspaper reported yesterday that the family was hoping to hold a wake tomorrow at a colonial-style waterfront restaurant at Cottesloe Beach, a resort village south of Perth that was a favorite spot of the actor's.
Kim Ledger, the actor's father, said in a statement released on Wednesday that the family was humbled to be "among millions of people worldwide who may have suffered the tragic loss of a child.''
"Few can understand the hollow, wrenching and enduring agony parents silently suffer when a child predeceases them," he said.
He said the toxicology results should "put an end to speculation'' about the cause of death.
"While no medications were taken in excess, we learned today the combination of doctor-prescribed drugs proved lethal for our boy," he said. "Heath's accidental death serves as a caution to the hidden dangers of combining prescription medication, even at low dosage."
Family members attended a memorial ceremony in Los Angeles last weekend, but the funeral arrangements have been kept a closely guarded secret.
Among those reportedly due to attend are Ledger's Brokeback Mountain co-star Jake Gylenhaal and a former girlfriend, Australian model Gemma Ward.
Two bouquets of red orchids were delivered yesterday to the Perth home of Ledger's mother, Sally Ledger-Bell, where relatives have been keeping a low profile since their return from the US.
A sea warning for Typhoon Champi could be issued as early as Wednesday night, possibly followed by a land warning on Thursday night or Friday, as the storm approaches Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The typhoon is expected to have its greatest impact on Taiwan on Friday and Saturday, bringing heavy rain to central and northern Taiwan and to Yilan and Hualien counties in the east, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. As of 2pm yesterday, Champi was about 2,470km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving westnorthwest at 20kph. It had maximum sustained winds of 191kph and a
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ORIGINS: A Taiwanese doctor practicing in Japan said he no longer needed to cover the nationality label on his license with a sticker, as it used to confuse his patients Starting this month, Taiwanese professionals working in Japan can list “Taiwan” as their place of origin following Tokyo’s easing of rules on “nationality” in official licensing documents. The change was announced yesterday by the Japan-Taiwan Friendship Parliamentarians’ League in Tokyo. The license revision covers 322 professions, including doctors and nurses. Previously, Taiwanese had to list “China” as their nationality on professional certifications and licenses, but the new rules updated the “nationality” to “nationality and region” or “nationality, etc,” allowing Taiwanese to use the name “Taiwan.” The league held a meeting about the revision at the House of Representatives Members’ Office Building in Tokyo
US-made M1A2T Abrams tanks are to participate in a major military exercise for the second time, when the Lien Yung exercise (聯勇操演) begin next month, a military source said yesterday. The army’s 584th Armored Brigade, which operates the US-built tanks, has already transported them to the Joint Operations Training Base in Pingtung County for the drills from late next month to December, the source said. During the month-long joint military exercise in southern Taiwan, the tanks’ crew would test their combat coordination, said the source, who asked not to be named. The M1A2T Abrams tanks were included in a major Taiwanese military exercise
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