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.
US President Donald Trump said "it’s up to" Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) what China does on Taiwan, but that he would be "very unhappy" with a change in the "status quo," the New York Times said in an interview published yesterday. Xi "considers it to be a part of China, and that’s up to him what he’s going to be doing," Trump told the newspaper on Wednesday. "But I’ve expressed to him that I would be very unhappy if he did that, and I don’t think he’ll do that," he added. "I hope he doesn’t do that." Trump made the comments in
NOT AN OPENING: Trump’s violation of international law does not affect China’s consideration in attacking Taiwan; Beijing lacks capability, not precedent, an official said Taiwanese officials see the US’ capture of the president of Venezuela as a powerful deterrent to Beijing’s aggression and a timely reminder of the US’ ability to defeat militaries equipped with Chinese-made weapons. The strikes that toppled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro signaled to authoritarian leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), US President Donald Trump’s willingness to use military might for international affairs core to US interests, one senior official in Taipei’s security circle said. That reassured Taiwan, the person said. Taipei has also dismissed the idea that Trump’s apparent violation of international law could embolden Beijing, said the official, who was not
A cold surge advisory was today issued for 18 cities and counties across Taiwan, with temperatures of below 10°C forecast during the day and into tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. New Taipei City, Taipei, Taoyuan and Hsinchu, Miaoli and Yilan counties are expected to experience sustained temperatures of 10°C or lower, the CWA said. Temperatures are likely to temporarily drop below 10°C in most other areas, except Taitung, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, CWA data showed. The cold weather is being caused by a strong continental cold air mass, combined with radiative cooling, a process in which heat escapes from
Snow this morning fell on Alishan for the first time in seven years, as a strong continental cold air mass sent temperatures plunging across Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The Alishan weather station, located at an elevation of about 2,200m in central Taiwan, recorded snowfall from 8:55am to 9:15am, when the temperature dropped to about 1°C, the CWA said. With increased moisture and low temperatures in the high-altitude Alishan area, the conditions were favorable for snow, CWA forecaster Tsai Yi-chi (蔡伊其) said. The last time snow fell at the Alishan weather station was on Jan. 10, 2018, while graupel fell there
RSS