Wu Ya-wen (吳雅雯), a 17-year-old nursing student, died after riding a roller coaster on Friday last week, and her family is blaming the amusement park for not administering proper medical care in time.
Wu, from Yilan County, collapsed after 90 seconds on the “Screaming Corridor,” which she rode with an 11-year-old cousin while other family members looked on at Leofoo Water Park in Hsinchu County.
Her cousin alerted workers at the park after realizing Wu was motionless. The workers called on-site medical personnel and an ambulance. Wu died 30 minutes after arriving at the hospital.
Shortly afterward, questions were raised about the first aid provided at the scene.
The park said that its staff followed standard procedures and efforts to resuscitate the girl were “continuous without any pause.”
Wu’s uncle, surnamed Lin (林), said the cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) given to the girl was not done properly because vomit was found in her mouth when she was being rushed to the hospital.
Lin said he knew how to perform CPR, but park staff prevented him from helping his niece, adding that she appeared to want to throw up after being helped off the ride and should have been kept in an upright position instead of being allowed to lie on her back.
Other relatives said that she had been in good health without any serious illness.
An initial examination by a public prosecutor was not able to determine the cause of her death, so an autopsy will be performed.
Leofoo Water Park public affairs manager Wang Yung-hao (王永豪) said that workers at the scene found Wu conscious, but sitting on the ride’s platform accompanied by her cousin. Within a minute, she fainted and her heart stopped beating.
Staff members who are certified first aid providers tried to resuscitate Wu and a nurse took over within minutes, Wang said.
Ten to 20 minutes later, an ambulance left the amusement park carrying the girl to a military hospital a few kilometers away.
The park said it will increase the visibility of warnings about those who should not go on white-knuckle rides, such as individuals with heart disease or hypertension, adding that staff operating the rides will be trained to help identify visitors who probably should not get on such rides.
This is the second incident involving the Swiss-made roller coaster since it started operating 12 years ago. In August 2011, a 21-year-old female college student went into cardiac arrest while on the ride and remains in a coma.
The U-shaped suspension Screaming Corridor is the only one of its kind in Asia. With a track that is only 190m long, the roller coaster reaches speeds of 122kph when it rushes down its biggest drop of 56m.
The 90-second ride incorporates 360o spiral acceleration followed by a vertical drop.
SHIPS, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES: The ministry has announced changes to varied transportation industries taking effect soon, with a number of effects for passengers Beginning next month, the post office is canceling signature upon delivery and written inquiry services for international registered small packets in accordance with the new policy of the Universal Postal Union, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday. The new policy does not apply to packets that are to be delivered to China, the ministry said. Senders of international registered small packets would receive a NT$10 rebate on postage if the packets are sent from Jan. 1 to March 31, it added. The ministry said that three other policies are also scheduled to take effect next month. International cruise ship operators
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
The Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency yesterday launched a gift box to market honey “certified by a Formosan black bear” in appreciation of a beekeeper’s amicable interaction with a honey-thieving bear. Beekeeper Chih Ming-chen (池明鎮) in January inspected his bee farm in Hualien County’s Jhuosi Township (卓溪) and found that more than 20 beehives had been destroyed and many hives were eaten, with bear droppings and paw prints near the destroyed hives, the agency said. Chih returned to the farm to move the remaining beehives away that evening when he encountered a Formosan black bear only 20m away, the agency said. The bear
Chinese embassy staffers attempted to interrupt an award ceremony of an international tea competition in France when the organizer introduced Taiwan and displayed the Republic of China flag, a Taiwanese tea farmer said in an interview published today. Hsieh Chung-lin (謝忠霖), chief executive of Juxin Tea Factory from Taichung's Lishan (梨山) area, on Dec. 2 attended the Teas of the World International Contest held at the Peruvian embassy in Paris. Hsieh was awarded a special prize for his Huagang Snow Source Tea by the nonprofit Agency for the Valorization of Agricultural Products (AVPA). During the ceremony, two Chinese embassy staffers in attendance
RSS