A Chinese speedboat pursued by Taiwan Coast Guard personnel for illegally entering Taiwanese waters capsized near Kinmen County on Wednesday, sending all four people on the boat into the water and killing two of them, the Coast Guard Administration said.
The unnamed Chinese vessel had been trespassing yesterday afternoon by sailing about 1 nautical mile off the coast of an islet of Kinmen, the agency said in a statement.
The Chinese vessel attempted to flee but capsized.
Photo courtesy of the Offshore Flotilla 9, Coast Guard Administration’s Kinmen-Matsu-Penghu Branch
Coast Guard personnel discovered an unnamed Chinese speedboat carrying four people in prohibited waters 1.1 nautical miles east of Beiding Island (北碇) at 1:45pm yesterday, while on duty to prevent unauthorized vessels from entering the area, the agency's Kinmen-Matsu-Penghu Branch said in a statement.
The personnel immediately requested that the boat submit to an inspection, but it resisted and capsized as it attempted to speed away.
All four people on the boat fell into the water and were rescued on the spot by Coast Guard personnel and sent to hospital.
Two were pronounced dead after efforts to resuscitate them failed, the agency said.
The other two are in stable condition and have been brought to Kinmen for further investigation by prosecutors.
The Coast Guard said the fishers' families were being contacted via official channels.
It said the case has been reported to the Kinmen prosecutors' office.
Kinmen is in the Taiwan Strait that separates China and Taiwan. From some parts of the archipelago, the southern Chinese city of Xiamen is visible to the naked eye.
Kinmen residents in recent years have reported seeing an increase in sand dredger vessels from China, which take sand from the ocean floor, as well as fishing ships, close to its coast.
At times, dozens of the ships can be seen from the island.
The government should improve children’s outdoor spaces and accelerate carbon reduction programs, as the risk of heat-related injury due to high summer temperatures rises each year, Greenpeace told a news conference yesterday. Greenpeace examined summer temperatures in Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Hsinchu City, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung to determine the effects of high temperatures and climate change on children’s outdoor activities, citing data garnered by China Medical University, which defines a wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) of 29°C or higher as posing the risk of heat-related injury. According to the Central Weather Administration, WBGT, commonly referred to as the heat index, estimates
The Taipei Department of Health’s latest inspection of fresh fruit and vegetables sold in local markets revealed a 25 percent failure rate, with most contraventions involving excessive pesticide residues, while two durians were also found to contain heavy metal cadmium at levels exceeding safety limits. Health Food and Drug Division Director Lin Kuan-chen (林冠蓁) yesterday said the agency routinely conducts inspections of fresh produce sold at traditional markets, supermarkets, hypermarkets, retail outlets and restaurants, testing for pesticide residues and other harmful substances. In its most recent inspection, conducted in May, the department randomly collected 52 samples from various locations, with testing showing
Taipei and other northern cities are to host air-raid drills from 1:30pm to 2pm tomorrow as part of urban resilience drills held alongside the Han Kuang exercises, Taiwan’s largest annual military exercises. Taipei, New Taipei City, Keelung, Taoyuan, Yilan County, Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County are to hold the annual Wanan air defense exercise tomorrow, following similar drills held in central and southern Taiwan yesterday and today respectively. The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and Maokong Gondola are to run as usual, although stations and passenger parking lots would have an “entry only, no exit” policy once air raid sirens sound, Taipei
Taipei placed 14th in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Best Student Cities 2026 list, its highest ever, according to results released yesterday. With an overall score of 89.1, the city climbed 12 places from the previous year, surpassing its previous best ranking of 17th in 2019. Taipei is “one of Asia’s leading higher-education hubs,” with strong employer activity scores and students “enjoying their experience of the city and often keen to stay after graduation,” a QS staff writer said. In addition to Taipei, Hsinchu (71st), Tainan (92nd), Taichung (113th) and Taoyuan (130th) also made QS’ list of the top 150 student cities. Hsinchu showed the
RSS