Renovations in the food court of a Taichung shopping mall were likely “highly related” to an explosion that killed four people on Thursday, the National Fire Agency said yesterday.
An apparent gas explosion on the 12th floor of the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang department store in Taichung at 11:33am on Thursday resulted in four deaths and 38 injuries.
Citing witness testimony, the agency yesterday said that an engineer saw a worker using a grinder to cut a gas pipeline.
Photo courtesy of the Taichung Fire Bureau
Someone had asked about the location of the gas valve, it said, adding that witnesses reported smelling gas 20 minutes before the explosion.
The operator of the store on Jan. 25 sent a request to Shin Kong Mitsukoshi’s Taipei headquarters to conduct renovations on the 12th floor from Monday to March 12, the agency said.
As it had not yet received approval, it did not apply with the local fire department before starting renovations as planned, it added.
Firefighting equipment, including the gas leak prevention system, was shut off at the time of the explosion, which contravenes standard construction procedures, Taichung Fire Bureau Chief Sun Fu-yu (孫福佑) said, adding that a fine of NT$30,000 would be imposed in accordance with the Fire Services Act (消防法).
The Taichung Police Department on Thursday summoned 20 department store employees, construction workers and Shin Chung Natural Gas employees for questioning.
Sixteen of the people were then sent to the Taichung District Prosecutors’ Office for further questioning and were released as witnesses, prosecutors said.
The other four were allowed to leave without further questioning.
The party responsible for the incident is yet to be determined, but the investigation will continue, prosecutors said.
None of the people questioned have been named as defendants or had punishments imposed, they added.
Shin Chung Natural Gas in a statement on Thursday said that the incident was unrelated to the company or natural gas.
Meanwhile, extended family members of a family from Macau who were injured by the explosion came to Taiwan yesterday, the Mainland Affairs Council said.
The family of seven was passing the department store when they were struck by falling debris, killing the grandparents and seriously injuring the two-year-old granddaughter, with the rest of the family incurring lighter injuries.
The girl underwent an emergency craniotomy due to severe brain injuries and remains in intensive care, China Medical University Children’s Hospital said yesterday.
She currently has a Glasgow Coma Scale score of 3, the hospital said. The scale ranges from 3 to 15, with 3 indicating complete unresponsiveness and 15 full responsiveness.
The next seven days would be crucial for her recovery, the hospital said.
The Macau government was immediately informed of the incident, the council said, adding that council personnel were also sent to Taichung to visit the injured people.
The government would assist with the family’s entry to Taiwan, visa situation, medical treatment, document verification, funeral arrangements and whatever else they require, it said.
Macau Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai (岑浩輝) in a speech on Thursday night extended his deepest condolences to the families of those who died in the incident.
Staff from Macau’s tourism crisis assistance team, accompanied by Macau Red Cross staff, have contacted the family to provide necessary assistance, the Macau Government Information Bureau said.
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday expressed his deepest condolences to those affected by the explosion.
He said he instructed Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) to oversee relevant agencies in assisting the Taichung City Government to resolve any issues.
Cho yesterday visited the regional branch of the Workforce Development Agency to hear briefings on the rescue and response efforts.
Shin Kong Mitsukoshi in a second statement yesterday afternoon apologized to the public and accepted full responsibility for the incident.
It said it would cooperate with the investigation and has established an emergency response team to assist the families of victims, affected employees and stores.
It also vowed to implement flexible working arrangements to ensure that employees’ salaries and benefits remain unaffected.
Additional reporting by Tsai Shu-yuan, Chang Jui-chen and Su Meng-chuan
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
Snow fell on Yushan (Jade Mountain, 玉山) yesterday morning as a continental cold air mass sent temperatures below freezing on Taiwan’s tallest peak, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Snowflakes were seen on Yushan’s north peak from 6:28am to 6:38am, but they did not fully cover the ground and no accumulation was recorded, the CWA said. As of 7:42am, the lowest temperature recorded across Taiwan was minus-5.5°C at Yushan’s Fengkou observatory and minus-4.7°C at the Yushan observatory, CWA data showed. On Hehuanshan (合歡山) in Nantou County, a low of 1.3°C was recorded at 6:39pm, when ice pellets fell at Songsyue Lodge (松雪樓), a
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
RSS