WEATHER
Temperatures in north fall
Temperatures in northern Taiwan dropped by about 8°C yesterday from Saturday as a cold air mass arrived, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Highs in the northern parts of the nation, and also in Yilan County, ranged from about 18°C to 20°C, an approximately 8°C drop compared with Saturday, the CWA said. Independent meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) said day-night temperature differences would continue today and tomorrow. Today, there is a high chance that the air mass would reach the levels of a continental cold air mass, meaning temperatures in some low-lying areas could dip to below 10°C, Wu said. Temperatures would start to climb back up after the cold air mass weakens on Wednesday and Thursday, before another is expected to arrive by Friday, he said.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
SOCIETY
Eleven remain hospitalized
Eleven people injured in a deadly gas explosion at a Taichung department store on Thursday remain hospitalized, including a two-year-old girl from Macau who is in intensive care, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said on Saturday. The girl is being treated in the intensive care unit (ICU) at China Medical University Hospital, it said, adding that four people are in ICUs at other hospitals, while the remaining injured are being observed in general wards. The girl underwent an emergency craniotomy — a surgical procedure in which a bone flap is temporarily removed from the skull to access the brain — due to severe brain injuries. The hospital yesterday said that she remained in the ICU as her condition was unchanged from Saturday and she was still in a coma. Two relatives of the girl — a 58-year-old woman and her 56-year-old husband — died after being hit by falling debris from the explosion when they were walking past the department store on a family trip to Taiwan. Four people were killed and 39 injured in the gas explosion.
TRAFFIC
Twenty injured in crash
A tour bus yesterday morning collided with a sedan and was rear-ended by another bus in Chiayi County, injuring 24 people, local authorities said. The Chiayi County Fire Bureau said that one of the two tour buses carrying religious pilgrims collided with a sedan in front of it near a red light at the intersection of highways 166 and 159. It was then hit by the second tour bus from behind. The drivers of the buses were suspected of not maintaining a safe distance from the vehicle in front of them, the bureau said. Three of the injured were sent to nearby hospitals.
DIPLOMACY
British delegation visits
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday welcomed a visit by a delegation of seven members of the British Parliament, led by Sarah Champion, cochair of the British-Taiwanese All Party Parliamentary Group and chair of the International Development Select Committee. The delegation arrived in Taiwan on Saturday. During their seven-day stay, they are to meet with President William Lai (賴清德) and visit former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), among other high-ranking officials, to exchange ideas on the nation’s political and economic situation, Taiwan-UK relations and regional security, among other issues, the ministry said. Other members of the delegation include British lawmakers Jeremy Purvis, Ben Spencer, Yuan Yang, Helena Dollimore, Noah Law and David Reed, the ministry said.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
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