Disease control officials plan to provide Kinmen hospitals training in disease inspection and prevention next week in preparation for "small three links" (
Since the opening of the "small three links" became unequivocal public policy, the Department of Health has been making preparations to deal with the impact that increased cross-strait ties may bring. In particular, health officials are worried about Chinese-born health epidemics unfamiliar to Taiwan.
Lee Ming-liang (李明亮), director-general of the health department, reported to the Executive Yuan yesterday that the department's budget for the next fiscal year would be more than NT$44 billion. Of that amount, NT$2.1 billion has been earmarked for national epidemic prevention.
The budget for disease inspection and prevention on Kinmen and Matsu was included in the budget, Lee said.
Twu Shiing-jer (涂醒哲), director-general of the Center For Disease Control, said yesterday that exactly how much will be spent on disease inspection and prevention on Kinmen and Matsu "will hinge on the scale of the small three links."
The health department has allocated NT$5 million and NT$3 million to Kinmen and Matsu, respectively, for inspections of facilities and training, Twu said.
"We will set up at least two inspection stations on Kinmen and Matsu," he said. "And each station is slated to have eight experts in various fields of disease inspection and prevention." Twu said that at present, staff levels on the islands are far too low to handle potential medical problems and emergencies that could follow the implementation of the "small three links."
The recruitment plans are definite, "but how many people and where to recruit, locally or from Taiwan, also depends on the scale of the small three links," Twu said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong tomorrow, which it said would possibly make landfall near central Taiwan. As of 2am yesterday, Fung-Wong was about 1,760km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving west-northwest at 26kph. It is forecast to reach Luzon in the northern Philippines by tomorrow, the CWA said. After entering the South China Sea, Typhoon Fung-Wong is likely to turn northward toward Taiwan, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said, adding that it would likely make landfall near central Taiwan. The CWA expects to issue a land
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
PREPARATION: Ferry lines and flights were canceled ahead of only the second storm to hit the nation in November, while many areas canceled classes and work Authorities yesterday evacuated more than 3,000 people ahead of approaching Tropical Storm Fung-wong, which is expected to make landfall between Kaohsiung and Pingtung County this evening. Fung-wong was yesterday morning downgraded from a typhoon to a tropical storm as it approached the nation’s southwest coast, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, as it issued a land alert for the storm. The alert applies to residents in Tainan, Kaohsiung, Pingtung and Taitung counties, and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春). As of press time last night, Taichung, Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Yilan, Miaoli, Changhua, Yunlin, Pingtung and Penghu counties, as well as Chiayi city and county had
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued a sea alert for Typhoon Fung-wong (鳳凰) as it threatened vessels operating in waters off the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島), the Bashi Channel and south of the Taiwan Strait. A land alert is expected to be announced some time between late last night and early this morning, the CWA said. As of press time last night, Taoyuan, as well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties had declared today a typhoon day, canceling work and classes. Except for a few select districts in Taipei and New Taipei City, all other areas and city
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