■ CRIME
Police looking for rapists
Taipei police yesterday said they were investigating a case in which a female college student was raped by two men in a riverside park in Songshan District (松山) last month. Police said the victim was walking in a riverside park on Tayou Road (塔悠路) late at night when two men dragged her into a field and raped her. Police said the victim had gone home and cleaned herself up after the attack -- in the process perhaps removing some of the evidence -- before contacting police and going to a hospital. Police said they were searching surveillance footage for clues to the perpetrators' identities, but had no suspects yet. Police have increased patrols in the park at night, warning the public that rapists are often repeat offenders.
■ SOCIETY
Township debates name
A plan to change the name of Sanmin Township (三民) in Kaohsiung County has hit an obstacle as residents remain divided over what to name it. A Bunun-majority township, Sanmin was called Mayatsun during Japanese colonial rule and then Maya Township (瑪雅) after World War II. It was later renamed Sanmin after Sun Yat-sen's (孫逸仙) "Three principles of the people." Officials and some locals want to change the township's name back to Maya. Although the name change is welcomed by many residents, some local elders suggest using another name, arguing that the name "Maya" was an incorrect name given by the Japanese. Officials will visit Japan to research the name before making a final decision.
■ CRIME
Forensics experts show off
The Criminal Investigation Bureau said yesterday that 22 teams of forensics specialists from police departments nationwide would compete in a forensics contest on Saturday to determine the country's top forensic experts. The contest will take place at Taiwan Police College in Taipei. Competitors will be required to prove their prowess at extracting and matching fingerprints, photographing criminal evidence and analyzing blood stains, the bureau said. Criminal Investigation Bureau Director Huang Mao-sui (黃茂穗) said the country's forensics experts had made significant progress over the past decade in criminal scene investigation and laboratory forensics, adding that Saturday's first ever forensics contest would promote continued advances.
■ HEALTH
Bureau warns of dengue
A health official yesterday urged people traveling to the south during the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday to take precautions against contracting dengue fever to avoid the spread of the mosquito-born disease. Chou Chih-hao (周志浩), deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control, said that as of last Wednesday the number of indigenous dengue fever cases had reached 451 since the beginning of summer, of which 349 case were reported in Tainan City, 61 in Kaohsiung City and 35 in Tainan County. Cases of dengue fever have also been reported in Kaohsiung, Changhua, Miaoli, Taoyuan and Ilan counties, Chou said, adding that those cases could all be traced back to Tainan or Kaohsiung cities. For this reason, he advised those traveling to the south to avoid leaving water standing around the house, as this provides mosquitos with a breeding ground. Travelers should avoid mosquitos as much as possible, Chou said.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
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