Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) lashed out at the Taiwan Power Company (Taipower, 台電) yesterday during his inspection of the Third Nuclear Power Plant (核三廠) in Pingtung County, saying that the real cause of a recent fire at the plant was the company's failure to pay attention.
Chang said that Taipower officials had lacked sufficient awareness of possible dangers after learning that salt crystals had affected transmission lines connecting the plant to remote high voltage towers on March 17.
Two electric generators at the plant came to a stop because of transmission problems.
Taipower's slowness in fixing the transmission problems, however, indirectly resulted in a fire on March 18 at the plant, which caused damage to an electric generator. The Atomic Energy Council (AEC) ranked the accident the worst of its kind in Taiwan's history.
On March 21, the Cabinet established an independent task force, led by National Science Council Chairman Wei Che-ho (魏哲和), to investigate last weekend's incidents at the plant . The taskforce members carried out their first inspection of the plant yesterday.
"It's time for Taipower to establish people's confidence in the company," Chang said.
Chang said that it would be irresponsible of Taipower to continue to ignore its "lax management" because most nuclear accidents which have occurred worldwide can be attributed to human error.
"Taipower has a responsibility to the lives and property of 23 million people in Taiwan," he said.
Taipower President Kuo Junne-huey (
Chang also demanded that Taipower officials carry out safety checks at the two other operational nuclear plants, both in Taipei County.
In addition to the Cabinet's task force, three other groups -- one from Taipower and two from the AEC, one of which is independent and includes experts from outside the AEC -- have been working on their investigations simultaneously.
Anti-nuclear activists, meanwhile, are far from satisfied with the government's investigation. They think existing nuclear safety regulation systems should be reviewed.
"The local monitoring network established by local residents, rescue teams and fire departments did not function adequately during the recent accident because Taipower officials at the plant procrastinated for at least one hour before reporting the accident," Lai Wei-chieh (賴偉傑), secretary-general of the Green Citizens' Action Alliance, told the Taipei Times.
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
WARNING: People in coastal areas need to beware of heavy swells and strong winds, and those in mountainous areas should brace for heavy rain, the CWA said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued sea and land warnings for Typhoon Ragasa, forecasting that it would continue to intensify and affect the nation the most today and tomorrow. People in Hualien and Taitung counties, and mountainous areas in Yilan and Pingtung counties, should brace for damage caused by extremely heavy rain brought by the typhoon’s outer rim, as it was upgraded to a super typhoon yesterday morning, the CWA said. As of 5:30pm yesterday, the storm’s center was about 630km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving northwest at 21kph, and its maximum wind speed had reached
MATAIAN RIVER: Rescue operations were ongoing, with officials urging residents to move to higher floors where possible as teams focus first on those at ground level Floodwaters from the overflowing Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) barrier lake swept into Hualien County’s Guangfu Township (光復) yesterday afternoon, leaving hundreds of people trapped and three missing as of press time last night, the Hualien County Fire Bureau said. The waters surged into downtown Guangfu after the riverbank burst at about 2:50pm, carrying mud and debris and submerging streets to rooftop level in some areas. Residents were seen climbing onto vehicles and rooftops to await rescue as thick, silt-laden water inundated the town. The surge destroyed the Mataian Bridge (馬太鞍溪橋) and flooded the Guangfu Railway Station. Rescue operations were launched with support from fire departments
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said that it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Ragasa this morning and a land warning at night as it approached Taiwan. Ragasa intensified from a tropical storm into a typhoon at 8am yesterday, the CWA said, adding that at 2pm, it was about 1,110km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip. The typhoon was moving northwest at 13kph, with sustained winds of up to 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA Web site showed. Forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said that Ragasa was projected to strengthen as it neared the Bashi Channel, with its 200km
RSS