Nine people were killed and 12 injured in a pub fire in Greater Taichung early yesterday morning, in one of the nation’s deadliest blazes in recent years.
Greater Taichung Prosecutor Wu Tso-yen (吳祚延) said a dancer at the ALA Pub on Jhongsing Street set fire to the ceiling with his torch during a performance, triggering the blaze at about 1:30am.
A survivor surnamed Chen (陳) said that when the ceiling caught fire, it caused a fireball that the audience initially thought was part of the show.
Photo: AFP, Taichung City Fire Bureau
The bar was engulfed in less than three minutes, he said, adding that he had been sitting on the second floor near a narrow staircase before rushing downstairs soon after the fire broke out. Many others sitting on the second floor close to the stage failed to escape, he said.
The fire department said the fire was so intense that temperatures likely went up to 400°C, adding that at such temperatures, exposure for one to two minutes would cause serious burns. It took firefighters about one hour to put out the blaze.
The nine victims — five men and four women — were all found on the second floor. All of them had been overcome by fumes and had asphyxiated, police said.
Investigators and families of the deceased were able to identify the bodies using remnants of their clothes and DNA tests. All the victims have been identified.
More than 70 people had been packed into the small bar, which occupies a floor area of 30 ping (99.17m2).
Eleven of the 12 injured were not seriously hurt and were discharged from hospital after treatment, while one remained in hospital, where her condition was described as non-life threatening.
Wu said prosecutors had brought the 28-year-old performer, Chu Chuan-yi (朱傳毅), back to the pub to recreate his performance to help with the investigation.
A torch likely caused the fire, Wu said. The owner of the bar and bar employees were also being questioned by police.
The club has passed 21 safety inspections in the past five years, the most recent of which was carried out last month, according to the fire department.
Greater Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) said that the city government “must find an answer” as to why the tragedy occurred even though the bar had passed the safety inspections.
The city government bans fire shows at local restaurants and hotels, but not bars, and now plans to apply the ban to other venues, including bars, Greater Taichung Deputy Mayor Hsiao Chia-chi (蕭家旗) said.
Government watchdog officials said they would launch an investigation to determine if the government has failed in its responsibilities.
Meanwhile, the Taipei City Government said it would immediately conduct safety inspections of bars and other entertainment venues in the wake of the fire.
Taipei Deputy Mayor Chen Wei-jen (陳威仁) said owners of pubs, karaoke lounges, dance clubs and similar establishments served with improvement notices would have to bring their facilities into line with safety standards within a specified time.
The inspections will check that indoor public spaces are equipped with appropriate fire fighting equipment and that they have emergency exit routes, fire doors and fire escape ladders, the fire prevention division of Taipei City Fire Department said.
The combined effect of the monsoon, the outer rim of Typhoon Fengshen and a low-pressure system is expected to bring significant rainfall this week to various parts of the nation, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The heaviest rain is expected to occur today and tomorrow, with torrential rain expected in Keelung’s north coast, Yilan and the mountainous regions of Taipei and New Taipei City, the CWA said. Rivers could rise rapidly, and residents should stay away from riverbanks and avoid going to the mountains or engaging in water activities, it said. Scattered showers are expected today in central and
People can preregister to receive their NT$10,000 (US$325) cash distributed from the central government on Nov. 5 after President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday signed the Special Budget for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience, the Executive Yuan told a news conference last night. The special budget, passed by the Legislative Yuan on Friday last week with a cash handout budget of NT$236 billion, was officially submitted to the Executive Yuan and the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon. People can register through the official Web site at https://10000.gov.tw to have the funds deposited into their bank accounts, withdraw the funds at automated teller
COOPERATION: Taiwan is aligning closely with US strategic objectives on various matters, including China’s rare earths restrictions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan could deal with China’s tightened export controls on rare earth metals by turning to “urban mining,” a researcher said yesterday. Rare earth metals, which are used in semiconductors and other electronic components, could be recovered from industrial or electronic waste to reduce reliance on imports, National Cheng Kung University Department of Resources Engineering professor Lee Cheng-han (李政翰) said. Despite their name, rare earth elements are not actually rare — their abundance in the Earth’s crust is relatively high, but they are dispersed, making extraction and refining energy-intensive and environmentally damaging, he said, adding that many countries have opted to
PEACE AND STABILITY: Maintaining the cross-strait ‘status quo’ has long been the government’s position, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan is committed to maintaining the cross-strait “status quo” and seeks no escalation of tensions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday, rebutting a Time magazine opinion piece that described President William Lai (賴清德) as a “reckless leader.” The article, titled “The US Must Beware of Taiwan’s Reckless Leader,” was written by Lyle Goldstein, director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Defense Priorities think tank. Goldstein wrote that Taiwan is “the world’s most dangerous flashpoint” amid ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He said that the situation in the Taiwan Strait has become less stable
RSS