High temperatures and sporadic rainfall in Taitung have caused increased snake sightings in houses and schools.
Da Wang Elementary School in Taimali Township (太麻里) last week reported sightings of two oriental ratsnakes, or Ptyas mucosus.
Dulan Elementary School on Thursday last week reported that Huang Hsin-hao (黃信豪), a teacher at the school, caught a 180cm-long oriental ratsnake, which was released back into the wild.
Photo: CNA
A man surnamed Chen (陳) in Guanshan Township (關山) on Wednesday last week reported that two cobras had entered his home.
Chen had mistakenly thought that the local fire department had called off personnel dispatched to catch the snakes and he was bitten when he tried to catch them himself.
He went to Guanshan Tzuchi Hospital for medical treatment and was transferred to MacKay Memorial Hospital in Taitung after four antivenom injections did not help.
The Taitung Bureau of Health said that in accordance with regulations, Tzuchi Hospital could not administer its last two shots of antivenom, which it had to keep in case of an emergency.
Taitung County Fire Department Secretary Lin Chien-cheng (林建誠) on Saturday said that while it was not a fire department’s job to catch snakes, Taitung is unique in that it has many of the reptiles.
People should call the fire department to help remove snakes from schools and homes, and avoid them in the wild, Lin said.
Venomous snakes are common sights in Taitung, he said.
Shaded areas in houses are likely hiding places for snakes, as many homes in Taitung are next to farmland, he said.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare’s hospital in Taitung, MacKay Memorial Hospital, Christian Hospital’s Taitung branch and Tzuchi Hospital have antivenom, as do local health centers, the bureau said.
However, there are only 13 shots of antivenom to treat Russel’s viper bites, including the stocks in Dawu Township (大武), Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) and Green Island (綠島), the bureau said.
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
COMMITMENTS: The company had a relatively low renewable ratio at 56 percent and did not have any goal to achieve 100 percent renewable energy, the report said Pegatron Corp ranked the lowest among five major final assembly suppliers in progressing toward Apple Inc’s commitment to be 100 percent carbon neutral by 2030, a Greenpeace East Asia report said yesterday. While Apple has set the goal of using 100 percent renewable energy across its entire business, supply chain and product lifecycle by 2030, carbon emissions from electronics manufacturing are rising globally due to increased energy consumption, it said. Given that carbon emissions from its supply chain accounted for more than half of its total emissions last year, Greenpeace East Asia evaluated the green transition performance of Apple’s five largest final
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
Temperatures in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) climbed past 37°C yesterday, as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued heat alerts for 16 municipalities, warning the public of intense heat expected across Taiwan. The hottest location in Taiwan was in Sindian, where the mercury reached 37.5°C at about 2pm, according to CWA data. Taipei’s Shilin District (士林) recorded a temperature of 37.4°C at noon, Taitung County’s Jinfeng Township (金峰) at 12:50 pm logged a temperature of 37.4°C and Miaoli County’s Toufen Township (頭份) reached 36.7°C at 11:40am, the CWA said. The weather agency yesterday issued a yellow level information notice for Taipei, New
RSS