The first shipment of cadaver skin from the US to be used for the treatment of hundreds of victims of the Formosa Fun Coast (八仙海岸) water park powder explosion and ensuing fire was scheduled to arrive in Taiwan last night, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Director-General Chiang Yu-mei (姜郁美) said.
The shipment of 37,000cm2 of cadaver skin, transported by airplane, was slated to arrive late last night, Chiang said, adding that a second shipment of cadaver skin from the US, about 60,000cm2, is scheduled to arrive on July 12.
A shipment of cadaver skin from the Netherlands is also expected to arrive soon, Chiang said.
All of the cadaver and artificial skin is to be stored at a private organ preservation laboratory in Taichung immediately after its arrival, Chiang said, adding that the FDA has set up a transparent information platform for all medical supplies required by hospitals nationwide.
A total of 495 people were injured follwing the explosion of colored cornstarch on Saturday last week at Formosa Fun Coast in New Taipei City’s Bali District (八里). According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, 211 people remain in critical condition.
A Grateful Taiwan
As of Thursday morning, two people had died of their injuries.
On Thursday, Minister of Health and Welfare Chiang Been-huang (蔣丙煌) said he was grateful for China’s offer to provide medical assistance, including donations of cadaver skin, but added that it should first be confirmed that the skin had not been harvested from executed prisoners.
China has offered human skin grafts worth 20 million yuan (US$3.2 million) to help in the treatment of the burn victims.
Chinese health authorities have also assembled a team of experts specializing in burn treatment that is ready to head to Taiwan at a moment’s notice.
The ministry said that it would first look into whether the skin was harvested from executed convicts.
It added that due to regulations, Chinese doctors are not allowed to treat those injured in last weekend’s blast.
Cadaver skin is the preferred treatment for severe burn patients until a graft of the patient’s own skin can be applied.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
Democratic Progressive Party caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu, front, grabs the pennant in a dragon boat race hosted by Qu Yuan Temple in the Shuanghsi River in Taipei’s Beitou District yesterday.
RSS