■ WEATHER
More rain on the way
The Central Weather Bureau (CWB) predicted another week of wet weather for the nation starting yesterday, with heavy rain warnings for residents in most parts of Taiwan from Thursday through Saturday. CWB meteorologists said the wet weather is a result of a cold front that has remained stagnant since moving across the nation over the weekend. They said the front is expected to move between the north and the south over the next week, bringing heavy rain to different parts of the nation. Residents should guard against heavy rain between Friday and Saturday, the forecast said. Temperatures across the nation will drop considerably from the highs of last week to between 21˚C and 30˚C in northern and central regions, 24˚C and 30˚C in the south, 17˚C and 28˚C in Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu, the forecast said.
■ TRANSPORTATION
Kaohsiung MRT adds trains
Two late-night trains will be added to the Kaohsiung Rapid Transit System’s north-sound Red Line schedule on a trial basis from tomorrow, the Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corp (KRTC) said yesterday. The two trains will leave simultaneously at 11:35pm from the Xiaogang (小港) Station — the last stop on the southern part of the Red Line — and from the Chiaotou (橋頭) Station in Kaohsiung County — the northernmost stop on the route. The system currently ends its daily operations at 11pm. The trains will stop at every station on the Red Line, the company said, adding that the trains will operate for one month. The late-night trains are expected to satisfy the needs of employees who are on night shift at nearby companies, such as the China Steel Corp (中鋼) and the Nanzih (楠梓) Processing Zone, the KRTC said. The KRTC said it may consider amending its Red Line schedule if the late-night train operation receives positive feedback from Kaohsiung residents.
■ POLITICS
Last Cabinet posts named
Former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator Kao Su-po (高思博) will be appointed Minister of Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission, sources said last night. Former KMT legislator Wu Ying-yih (吳英毅) will be named minister of the Overseas Compatriot Affairs Commission, while minister without portfolio-designate Tsai Hsun-hsiung (蔡勳雄) will also hold the post of governor of Taiwan Province. Secretary-general elect of the Executive Yuan Hsueh Hsiang-chuan (薛香川) will also serve concurrently as governor of Fujian Province (Kinmen and Lienchiang counties).
■ RESCUE
Search continues for diver
Coast guard forces continued their search yesterday for a diver who went missing in waters off Ilan County the day before. Huang Hsin-fa (黃信發) was diving with five other divers in waters about 6.5km east of Suao Port when he went missing. After Huang failed to resurface following the one-hour dive, the captain of the dive team tried in vain to locate him underwater. The captain of the Taiping, which the divers took on their expedition, then radioed coast guard forces stationed in Suao for assistance. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) dispatched three rescue vessels and a helicopter after receiving the emergency call, but were unable to locate Huang. Yesterday morning, the CGA asked the Ministry of the Interior’s National Airborne Service Corps to assist in the search.
SECURITY: Starlink owner Elon Musk has taken pro-Beijing positions, and allowing pro-China companies to control Taiwan’s critical infrastructure is risky, a legislator said Starlink was reluctant to offer services in Taiwan because of the nation’s extremely high penetration rates in 4G and 5G services, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said yesterday. The ministry made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, which reviewed amendments to Article 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act (電信管理法). Article 36 bans foreigners from holding more than 49 percent of shares in public telecommunications networks, while shares foreigners directly and indirectly hold are also capped at 60 percent of the total, unless specified otherwise by law. The amendments, sponsored by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ko
The eastern extension of the Taipei MRT Red Line could begin operations as early as late June, the Taipei Department of Rapid Transit Systems said yesterday. Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said it is considering offering one month of free rides on the new section to mark its opening. Construction progress on the 1.4km extension, which is to run from the current terminal Xiangshan Station to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, was 90.6 percent complete by the end of last month, the department said in a report to the Taipei City Council's Transportation Committee. While construction began in October 2016 with an
NON-RED SUPPLY: Boosting the nation’s drone industry is becoming increasingly urgent as China’s UAV dominance could become an issue in a crisis, an analyst said Taiwan’s drone exports to Europe grew 41.7-fold from 2024 to last year, with demand from Ukraine’s fight against Russian aggression the most likely driver of growth, a study showed. The Institute for Democracy, Society and Emerging Technology (DSET) in a statement on Wednesday said it found that many of Taiwan’s uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) sales were from Poland and the Czech Republic. These countries likely transferred the drones to Ukraine to aid it in its fight against the Russian invasion that started in 2022, it said. Despite the gains, Taiwan is not the dominant drone exporter to these markets, ranking second and fourth
The New Taipei City Art Museum this weekend plans to celebrate its first anniversary with a two-day extravaganza featuring live concerts and a large-scale synchronized fireworks and drone display, the New Taipei City Cultural Affairs Department said. The two-day celebrations are to take place in the museum’s outdoor park, with markets and live performances by singers including Ann Bai (白安), Bii (畢書盡) and the Cosmos People (宇宙人), the department said. The highlight on both evenings would be the "Echoes of Light" show, an aerial spectacle combining fireworks and drone performances designed around the concept of "dual stages in the sky," it
RSS