More than 2,000 travelers were stranded at Penghu’s Magong Airport yesterday morning as the cancelation of shipping services on Monday forced many to seek air transport to Taiwan proper.
All shipping services were canceled on Monday — the last day of the Dragon Boat Festival holiday— due to inclement weather at sea caused by the combined influence of a tropical depression and its circumference.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) said it had coordinated with airlines to offer five additional flights on Monday, which carried 477 passengers back to Taiwan.
The ministry said it also worked with the Ministry of National Defense to deploy military aircraft to carry 280 passengers.
As shipping services in Penghu were again canceled yesterday, travelers who failed to board the flights on Monday returned to Magong Airport yesterday morning.
One of the travelers was quoted by the Chinese-language Apple Daily as saying he arrived at the airport at 4:30am to join the waiting list.
Another traveler, surnamed Pan (潘), said that he had arrived at the airport at 5:30am and managed to make it into the first batch of passengers on the waiting list.
The MOTC said it had asked airlines to offer eight additional flights from Penghu to Taiwan proper yesterday: three to Taipei, three to Taichung and two to Kaohsiung.
The shipping services in Penghu are scheduled to reopen today, the MOTC said, adding that the Port and Marine Bureau is coordinating with shipping operators to increase the number of ferry services between Penghu and Chiayi, and to offer one additional service to Kaohsiung.
Travelers in Lienchiang County also had trouble returning to Taiwan on Monday because their flights had been canceled due to inclement weather.
The MOTC said it had asked shipping operators to offer services between Matsu and Keelung and Matsu and Kaohsiung. It had also asked Uni Air to offer one additional flight from Matsu’s Nangan Airport to Taipei.
Restaurants in New Taipei City, Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County are to be included in the Michelin Guide’s review for the first time this year, alongside existing entries from Taipei, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung, the France-based culinary publication said yesterday. This year’s edition of the Michelin Guide Taiwan is to be unveiled on Aug. 19 in Taipei. In addition to the coveted star ratings, Michelin Taiwan would announce its “Bib Gourmand” selections — a distinction awarded to establishments offering high-quality food at moderate prices — on Aug. 12. This year’s Bib Gourmand list would also feature restaurants in New Taipei City, Hsinchu
A firefighter yesterday died after falling into New Taipei City's Xindian River when a rescue dinghy capsized during a search mission for a man who was later found dead. The New Taipei City Fire Department said that it received a report at 4:12pm that a 50-year-old man, surnamed Chen (陳), had fallen into the river. A 32-year-old firefighter, surnamed Wu (吳), was among the rescuers deployed to look for Chen, the fire department said, adding that he and five other rescue personnel were in the dinghy when it capsized. Wu had no vital signs after being pulled from the water to the
Organizing one national referendum and 26 recall elections targeting Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators could cost NT$1.62 billion (US$55.38 million), the Central Election Commission said yesterday. The cost of each recall vote ranges from NT$16 million to NT$20 million, while that of a national referendum is NT$1.1 billion, the commission said. Based on the higher estimate of NT$20 million per recall vote, if all 26 confirmed recall votes against KMT legislators are taken into consideration, along with the national referendum on restarting the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant, the total could be as much as NT$1.62 billion, it said. The commission previously announced
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday welcomed NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte’s remarks that the organization’s cooperation with Indo-Pacific partners must be deepened to deter potential threats from China and Russia. Rutte on Wednesday in Berlin met German Chancellor Friedrich Merz ahead of a ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of Germany’s accession to NATO. He told a post-meeting news conference that China is rapidly building up its armed forces, and the number of vessels in its navy outnumbers those of the US Navy. “They will have another 100 ships sailing by 2030. They now have 1,000 nuclear warheads,” Rutte said, adding that such
RSS