While the destruction caused by the series of gas explosions left Greater Kaohsiung streets looking much like a war zone, battle scenes extended to hospital emergency rooms around the city.
The Greater Kaohsiung Government launched its mass casualty response program early yesterday morning, preparing hospitals for the wounded making their way in and for those who were going from one hospital to another, looking for family members.
According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the casualties were sent to more than 20 hospitals, including Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Veterans’ General Hospital, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Yuan’s General Hospital, the Armed Forces General Hospital and Kaohsiung Municipal United Hospitals.
Photo: Lo Hsin-chen, Taipei Times
Most of the injured suffered cuts and burns, the ministry said.
Meanwhile, people were tearful and emotional as they identified their loved ones at the Kaohsiung Municipal Funeral Parlor, some of them venting their anger at officials on the scene, criticizing the government for not doing enough in the rescue effort.
The mother of a victim surnamed Yang (楊) arrived at the funeral parlor with her two sons, and was so overcome by grief she could not stand on her own. She said her daughter ran into an explosion on her way home from work and died instantly.
A man surnamed Hung (洪) mourned his brother-in-law’s wife, who was killed by an explosion on her way home, saying that “this would not have happened to her if she got off work earlier.”
Many people who arrived quickly at the funeral parlor after being notified of their family members’ deaths had to wait hours before seeing the bodies of their loved ones.
Greater Kaohsiung Government Mortuary Services Office Director-General Cheng Ming-hsing (鄭明興) became the target of criticism when he arrived.
Many victims’ families complained that the government did not put enough resources into the rescue effort.
One man, in tears, said a member of his family had been pinned under a big rock, and it took him several hours to remove the rock on his own with his bare hands, with no help from rescuers or officials.
“Who could bring my family back alive?” he shouted.
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
CHANGES: After-school tutoring periods, extracurricular activities during vacations or after-school study periods must not be used to teach new material, the ministry said The Ministry of Education yesterday announced new rules that would ban giving tests to most elementary and junior-high school students during morning study and afternoon rest periods. The amendments to regulations governing public education at elementary schools and junior high schools are to be implemented on Aug. 1. The revised rules stipulate that schools are forbidden to use after-school tutoring periods, extracurricular activities during summer or winter vacation or after-school study periods to teach new course material. In addition, schools would be prohibited from giving tests or exams to students in grades one to eight during morning study and afternoon break periods, the
AMENDMENT: Contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau must be reported, and failure to comply could result in a prison sentence, the proposal stated The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) yesterday voted against a proposed bill by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers that would require elected officials to seek approval before visiting China. DPP Legislator Puma Shen’s (沈伯洋) proposed amendments to the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), stipulate that contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau should be reported, while failure to comply would be punishable by prison sentences of up to three years, alongside a fine of NT$10 million (US$309,041). Fifty-six voted with the TPP in opposition