■ Weather
Longwang leaves two dead
Typhoon Longwang killed two people and injured 53 others after lashing Taiwan over the weekend and caused at least NT$200 million (US$6.5 million) in damage, government officials said yesterday. "The typhoon has so far caused NT$130 million in lost farm products and aquaculture," the Council of Agriculture said in a report on the agricultural damage brought by the powerful storm. Various local governments across the nation also reported about a combined NT$70 million worth of infrastructure damage. Premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) was relieved that the damage was not as bad as expected, saying that there "was some good fortune in the midst of this misfortune."
■ Culture
Cloud Gate director a `hero'
Famed writer-turned choreographer Lin Hwai-min (林懷民), who founded the internationally acclaimed Cloud Gate Dance Theater, was chosen by Time magazine as one of the 25 "Asian Heroes" for this year. Lin, who is also the artistic director of Cloud Gate, is the only person from Taiwan that made Time's 2005 Asian Heroes list. The Asian edition of the magazine has selected and published "Asian Heroes" for the past four years, choosing men and women that it considers to be either courageous, extraordinarily distinguished in their performances or good role models to inspire other people. Introducing Lin, the magazine said that Lin's troupe once attracted over 60,000 people to watch an outdoor performance; in Europe, members of the audience cried while watching Cloud Gate performances.
■ Transportation
CAL union to sue over funds
The China Airlines (CAL) Employees Union yesterday vowed to file a suit to stop the use of the airlines' funds to finance the debt-ridden Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC). Jesse Lee (李昭平), president of CAL Employees Union, said that the union is set to file a lawsuit today, asking the court to void the resolution made by the China Aviation Development Foundation's board of directors to inject NT$4.5 billion (US$135 million) into the THSRC project. The airline is controlled by the foundation and Ministry of Transportation and Communications. Lee said the decision made by the board of directors clearly violates the foundation's purpose, deviates from social justice and influences the aviation industry. He also accused the board of directors of channeling interests and neglecting their duties.
■ Transportation
Chair reports to task force
Briefing the Executive Yuan's High-Speed Railway Task Force yesterday about the progress of the nation's first high-speed railway project, THSRC Chairwoman Nita Ing (殷琪) said the construction of the project is 86 percent complete and that the company will soon resume negotiations with the Japanese contractor that is in charge of the project's mechanical and electrical system, as well as the firm supplying train carriages. Premier Frank Hsieh on Saturday ordered the task force to be set up to help tackle a host of problems plaguing the project. Yesterday, the premier also demanded that the THSRC increase the number of board supervisors representing government holdings at its next trustee board meeting to help implement the government's participation and supervision of the project.
The inspection equipment and data transmission system for new robotic dogs that Taipei is planning to use for sidewalk patrols were developed by a Taiwanese company, the city’s New Construction Office said today, dismissing concerns that the China-made robots could pose a security risk. The city is bringing in smart robotic dogs to help with sidewalk inspections, Taipei Deputy Mayor Lee Ssu-chuan (李四川) said on Facebook. Equipped with a panoramic surveillance system, the robots would be able to automatically flag problems and easily navigate narrow sidewalks, making inspections faster and more accurate, Lee said. By collecting more accurate data, they would help Taipei
TAKING STOCK: The USMC is rebuilding a once-abandoned airfield in Palau to support large-scale ground operations as China’s missile range grows, Naval News reported The US Marine Corps (USMC) is considering new sites for stockpiling equipment in the West Pacific to harden military supply chains and enhance mobility across the Indo-Pacific region, US-based Naval News reported on Saturday. The proposed sites in Palau — one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — and Australia would enable a “rapid standup of stored equipment within a year” of the program’s approval, the report said, citing documents published by the USMC last month. In Palau, the service is rebuilding a formerly abandoned World War II-era airfield and establishing ancillary structures to support large-scale ground operations “as China’s missile range and magazine
A 72-year-old man in Kaohsiung was sentenced to 40 days in jail after he was found having sex with a 67-year-old woman under a slide in a public park on Sunday afternoon. At 3pm on Sunday, a mother surnamed Liang (梁) was with her child at a neighborhood park when they found the man, surnamed Tsai (蔡), and woman, surnamed Huang (黃), underneath the slide. Liang took her child away from the scene, took photographs of the two and called the police, who arrived and arrested the couple. During questioning, Tsai told police that he had met Huang that day and offered to
BETTER SERVICE QUALITY: From Nov. 10, tickets with reserved seats would only be valid for the date, train and route specified on the ticket, THSRC said Starting on Nov. 10, high-speed rail passengers with reserved seats would be required to exchange their tickets to board an earlier train. Passengers with reserved seats on a specific train are currently allowed to board earlier trains on the same day and sit in non-reserved cars, but as this is happening increasingly often, and affecting quality of travel and ticket sales, Taiwan High-Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) announced that it would be canceling the policy on Nov. 10. It is one of several new measures launched by THSRC chairman Shih Che (史哲) to improve the quality of service, it said. The company also said
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