Two people died and two others were injured yesterday in a fire at a building that housed a pharmacy in Taitung City, local firefighters said.
Soon after the fire broke out at about 1am, a man in his 60s, surnamed Yu (游), escaped from the fire on his own and told firefighters who had rushed to the scene that there were three other people in the burning building.
Yu is the owner of the building that housed San Tai Pharmacy, which had been run by his family for more than six decades.
Photo: Huang Ming-tang, Taipei Times
The firefighters found Yu’s wife, who is in her 60s, unconscious on the third floor and rescued her.
They also rescued Yu’s mother, who is in her 80s, from dense smoke on the same floor, and a female caregiver on the fourth floor.
Yu’s mother and the caregiver were found to be without vital signs after they were taken from the burning building, the firefighters said.
The fire was extinguished at about 2am and all four people were rushed to a nearby hospital, the firefighters said.
Yu’s wife and the caregiver, whose identity had not yet been determined as of press time last night, were pronounced dead at the hospital, they added.
The Taitung County Fire Department is investigating the source of the fire.
The burned building is opposite ShowTime Cinema on Xinsheng Road in Taitung City. Yu and his family lived above the pharmacy in the same building.
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) on Friday laid out the Cabinet’s updated policy agenda and recapped the government’s achievements ahead of the one-year anniversary of President William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration. Cho said the government had made progress across a range of areas, including rebuilding Hualien, cracking down on fraud, improving pedestrian safety and promoting economic growth. “I hope the public will not have the impression that the Cabinet only asked the legislature to reconsider a bunch of legal amendments,” Cho said, calling the moves “necessary” to protect constitutional governance and the public’s interest. The Cabinet would work toward achieving its “1+7” plan, he said. The
Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) hosted a dinner in Taipei last night with key Taiwanese suppliers to celebrate the successful mass production of the company’s new Blackwell AI systems. Speaking to the media earlier yesterday, Huang thanked Nvidia’s Taiwanese partners for their contributions to the company’s ecosystem, while also sharing his plans to meet with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) founder Morris Chang (張忠謀). In response to rumors that Nvidia will launch a downgraded Hopper H20 chip for China in July, Huang dismissed the reports, saying, “That is not true.” He clarified that there
RSS