More than 800 sessions have been held for Greater Kaohsiung residents seeking help for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) since last week’s gas pipeline explosions and extra workers are in place to provide assistance, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday.
A program was launched on Friday last week and more than 60 medical personnel and social workers were mobilized in the disaster-affected area, ministry spokesman Wang Che-chao (王哲超) said.
“We are taking a pro-active role in approaching those who might have suffered post-traumatic stress disorder,” Wang said.
A person can develop post-traumatic stress after a traumatic event that results in feelings of stress, fear and powerlessness.
Health workers are being sent to check on the mental health of residents in the two districts impacted by the blasts, and the ministry is building closer ties with ward chiefs to make it easier to approach those who may need help, Wang said.
Individuals who have had trouble getting help can call a toll-free hotline — 0800-788-995 — that has a team of 40 professionals ready to take calls around the clock, Wang said.
Since it can take time for PTSD to develop, the mental health services will continue for another two to three months, Wang said.
Taiwanese Society of Psychiatry director-general Frank Chou (周煌智) said it was normal for people to develop acute post-traumatic syndrome — which involves replaying horrifying images and having difficulty sleeping — within a week of a traumatic event. It will be crucial to keep a close eye on victims to see if they are recovering, he said.
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
Residents have called on the Taipei City Government to reconsider its plan to demolish a four-decades-old pedestrian overpass near Daan Forest Park. The 42-year-old concrete and steel structure that serves as an elevated walkway over the intersection of Heping and Xinsheng roads is to be closed on Tuesday in preparation for demolition slated for completion by the end of the month. However, in recent days some local residents have been protesting the planned destruction of the intersection overpass that is rendered more poetically as “sky bridge” in Chinese. “This bridge carries the community’s collective memory,” said a man surnamed Chuang
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei