A Changhua County fast-food restaurant in was allegedly the source of a fire that on Wednesday destroyed TV and Internet cables, interrupting cable TV services at about 5,000 households and Internet at almost 600.
Employees of the McDonald’s branch in Huatan Township (花壇) were burning joss paper in a Ghost Festival ritual, the Changhua Fire Department said, adding that smoldering paper fell through a maintenance hole in the ground, melting the coverings of the cable laid underneath the sidewalk.
The restaurant had to close for 90 minutes due to smoke, a statement released by McDonald’s Taiwan said, adding that the fire was put out by firefighters. The company declined to comment on the cause of the incident.
Cable TV operator NCDTV reported that the cables had been ignited by the joss paper, and that the incident cut off signals to Huatan and Dacun (大村) townships, adding that TV and Internet services were restored in the early morning yesterday, 12 hours after the fire broke out.
The company would demand compensation from McDonald’s, it said.
Cables were destroyed at a length of more than 150m, causing about NT$1 million (US$33,863) in damage, NCDTV said, while the fire department verified the reports.
A nearby dealership had to remove all the vehicles from its premises, the fire department said, adding that smoke might otherwise have damaged the cars and caused great losses to its business.
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