Exactly one month after a devastating dust explosion and ensuing fire killed nine people and left hundreds in a critical condition, the Taiwanese public continues to donate money to victims of the blast and their families.
The Buddhist Huairen foundation yesterday donated NT$2 million (US$63,371) to an account opened by the Ministry of Health and Welfare to gather funds for the victims of the June 27 explosion at the Formosa Fun Coast (八仙海岸) water park in New Taipei City’s Bali District (八里).
A charity affiliated with the Lantian Academy of Classical Learning in Nantou yesterday also donated NT$1 million to the Nantou County Government for the blast victims.
Meanwhile, the Taiwan branch of chemical and pharmaceutical company Bayer donated 100 boxes of vitamin supplements to medical personnel working at the 22 hospitals treating the burn patients.
As donations continue to pour into the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s special account, the ministry has decided to extend the deadline for donations from July 31 to Sept. 30 to better meet the needs of donors, Department of Social Assistance and Social Work head Lee Mei-chen (李美珍) said.
Donations to victims of the explosion had exceeded NT$1.49 billion as of Friday last week, ministry data showed.
Up to that day, nine victims had died of their injuries, while 339 were still being treated at various hospitals nationwide, ministry statistics show.
New Taipei Vity Deputy Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) yesterday said the city government is working with the Sunshine Social Welfare Foundation to find rehabilitation centers for the more than 300 patients who suffered medium to severe burns.
The city is also recruiting 20 specialists to look after the patients, Hou said.
Meanwhile, Ma Hsu (馬旭), a plastic surgeon at Taipei Veterans General Hospital and head of the Taiwan Society for Burn Injuries and Wound Healing, yesterday said that many of the hospitalized burn victims have shown signs of progress.
However, they can only be deemed out of the woods if they are able to breathe without a respirator and their burns are reduced to less than 40 percent of their bodies, he said.
About 500 people who attended a party at the water park were injured when colored corn starch exploded, engulfing partygoers, most of them in their teens and 20s, in fire.
Since the disaster, the international community has also extended a helping hand to the victims, with experts from Japan and the US visiting Taiwan to offer medical advice.
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