Police are investigating whether a driver who on Tuesday caused an accident that resulted in two deaths and set fire to buildings near the Taipei Arena was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Footage released by Taipei police showed a car at about 1:30am slamming into a concrete divider on Nanjing E Road Sec 4 at high speed, then flying into the air before crashing into buildings along the road.
The Porsche 911 Turbo exploded seconds later, setting five buildings on fire.
Photo: Wang Kuan-jen, Taipei Times
The driver, Chiang Ping-wei (江平暐), 39, and his girlfriend, who was sitting in the passenger seat, Cheng Yi-hsin (鄭宜欣), 37, both died in the accident, police said.
Chiang was the owner and proprietor and Cheng the director of the fashion and leisure wear company Buttereverything International Ltd, their families said.
The vehicle damaged 15 motorbikes parked on the sidewalk, two of which were completely destroyed, Songshan Police Precinct Traffic Chief Huang Tsung-pin (黃宗斌) said, adding that firefighters had to evacuate 25 residents and rescued three people who were trapped on upper floors.
“The vehicle broke into several parts during the crash, and the two bodies were burned beyond recognition, so we were unable to take blood samples to test for alcohol levels,” Huang said, adding that forensic scientists would investigate further.
The two were reportedly charged with drug possession in 2016 and were implicated in a major case involving Lee Wei-han (李韋翰), who was convicted of selling cocaine, cannabis, ecstasy and other illegal substances at nightclubs in the city.
Police said they are investigating whether drug or alcohol use was involved, as the car was likely traveling at more than 100kph when it plowed into the concrete barrier separating the bus lane from the road.
The blaze affected six shops on the ground level, with one clothing store owner saying it would likely cost about NT$1 million (US$33,395) to repair the store and replace the damaged stock.
The other affected stores must also close for at least a week to clean and make repairs, they said.
Together, they estimated damage and other expenses to total more than NT$10 million, and requested that the authorities help them get financial compensation from the families of the deceased.
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