WEATHER
Colder winter forecast
Taiwan is likely to experience a colder and drier winter in the coming months due to a potential La Nina episode, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. It said there was a 50 percent chance of La Nina development, characterized by stronger northerly and northeasterly winds, with conditions expected to normalize around spring. As a result, slightly lower temperatures and reduced rainfall are forecast between this month and February. This month, average temperatures are projected to range from 17.6°C to 18.9°C in northern Taiwan, 18.1°C to 19.3°C in central Taiwan, 19.0°C to 20.2°C in the south, and 19.1°C to 20.1°C in the east, it said. As for the weather in the short term, temperatures are expected to gradually rise from yesterday, but would drop again with the arrival of stronger winds on Thursday and a cold air mass on Sunday next week, the CWA said.
ANIMAL WELFARE
Pit bull kills pet dog
The owner of a pit bull could be subject to a fine of up to NT$225,000 after the animal mauled to death a pet dog in Hsinchu County, the local animal protection and health inspection office said on Thursday. The incident took place on Sept. 30, when the pit bull, unaccompanied by its owner, was wandering around a residential community and fatally attacked the pet dog of a local resident, the office said. The owner’s negligence contributed to the animal killing the other dog, an incident that could result in a fine of NT$45,000 to NT$225,000 under the Animal Protection Act (動物保護法), it said. The office said it has instructed the owner to take preventive measures, adding that if a similar incident occurs, authorities could place the pit bull in a shelter for public safety reasons.
CRIME
Wildlife worker killed
Authorities are investigating an incident in which a man was fatally shot as he returned from a remote mountainous area of Nantou County. The Nantou Police Department’s Renai Precinct said the shooting occurred late Tuesday night, after the victim, a 50-year-old indigenous man surnamed Chang (張), and two indigenous companions went to change the battery of a Formosan black bear surveillance camera. On the return trip, Chang was struck in the head by a bullet, police said. Following the incident, Chang’s companions notified the police, who found him dead early on Wednesday. Multiple news outlets reported on Thursday that Chang was a member of a local group that receives government funds to conduct black bear conservation work. Chang’s companions have been listed as witnesses, rather than suspects, pending a forensic examination and autopsy, authorities said.
CRIME
Child sex suspect arrested
A Pingtung man has been indicted after he was arrested and held incommunicado for allegedly luring minors into producing explicit photos and videos of themselves, the Pingtung District Prosecutors Office said Thursday. The 27-year-old man, surnamed Tsai (蔡), has been detained and charged with committing 31 sexual offenses against 26 minors. The case was brought to light after one of the victims went to the police. Photos of Tsai having sex with boys under the age of 14 or engaging in other obscene acts were discovered on his cellphone, prosecutors said. Tsai was charged with violating the Child and Youth Sexual Exploitation Prevention Act (兒童及少年性剝削防制條例) and the Criminal Code.
AGING: While Japan has 22 submarines, Taiwan only operates four, two of which were commissioned by the US in 1945 and 1946, and transferred to Taiwan in 1973 Taiwan would need at least 12 submarines to reach modern fleet capabilities, CSBC Corp, Taiwan chairman Chen Cheng-hung (陳政宏) said in an interview broadcast on Friday, citing a US assessment. CSBC is testing the nation’s first indigenous defense submarine, the Hai Kun (海鯤, Narwhal), which is scheduled to be delivered to the navy next month or in July. The Hai Kun has completed torpedo-firing tests and is scheduled to undergo overnight sea trials, Chen said on an SET TV military affairs program. Taiwan would require at least 12 submarines to establish a modern submarine force after assessing the nation’s operational environment and defense
A white king snake that frightened passengers and caused a stir on a Taipei MRT train on Friday evening has been claimed by its owner, who would be fined, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. A person on Threads posted that he thought he was lucky to find an empty row of seats on Friday after boarding a train on the Bannan (Blue) Line, only to spot a white snake with black stripes after sitting down. Startled, he jumped up, he wrote, describing the encounter as “terrifying.” “Taipei’s rat control plan: Release snakes on the metro,” one person wrote in reply, referring
The coast guard today said that it had disrupted "illegal" operations by a Chinese research ship in waters close to the nation and driven it away, part of what Taipei sees a provocative pattern of China's stepped up maritime activities. The coast guard said that it on Thursday last week detected the Chinese ship Tongji (同濟號), which was commissioned only last year, 29 nautical miles (54km) southeast of the southern tip of Taiwan, although just outside restricted waters. The ship was observed lowering ropes into the water, suspected to be the deployment of scientific instruments for "illegal" survey operations, and the coast
An inauguration ceremony was held yesterday for the Danjiang Bridge, the world’s longest single-mast asymmetric cable-stayed bridge, ahead of its official opening to traffic on Tuesday, marking a major milestone after nearly three decades of planning and construction. At the ceremony in New Taipei City attended by President William Lai (賴清德), Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰), Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜), the bridge was hailed as both an engineering landmark and a long-awaited regional transport link connecting Tamsui (淡水) and Bali (八里)
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