HEALTH
Holiday snake advisory
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on Tuesday warned people to be cautious of venomous snakes when tomb sweeping outdoors. This year’s four-day Tomb-Sweeping Festival holiday starts today and ends on Sunday. The CDC reminds people to wear long sleeves and pants, shoes that cover the whole foot, and to use a stick to stir grass or bushes to scare away snakes before passing through. If bitten by a snake, people should remain calm, remember the characteristics of the snake, take off accessories, apply a bandage above and around the bite to slow the spread of the venom, and seek medical attention at a hospital as soon as possible, it said.
ENVIRONMENT
Bear pair rescued
A male and female Formosan black bear pair were successfully rescued from snare traps in Taitung County and released back into the wild, the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency said on Tuesday. This marks the first-ever simultaneous rescue of two bears, which occurred at 2pm on Monday when a patrol team from Yanping Township (延平) discovered the animals at the junction of an indigenous reserve and state-owned forest 725m above sea level, the agency said. The male bear weighed 60kg and the female 43kg, the agency said, adding that both animals had their left forelimbs trapped in snares, which were about 10m apart. Fortunately, the bears’ injuries were minor, and after receiving on-site treatment, they were monitored until the anesthesia wore off, it said. Once awake, the bears walked off and safely returned to their natural habitat, the agency said. The rescue represents a significant milestone for the local community, as it is the first time two Formosan black bears have been successfully rescued and returned to the wild at the same time, it said. An indigenous member of the rescue team expressed relief and pride, saying: “We’re happy we did the right thing. We helped our neighbors, the bears, safely return home.” Given the increasing presence of Formosan black bears in lowland and settlement areas, the agency said it would continue to provide improved hunting equipment to local farmers and indigenous people to help manage other wildlife without harming the bears, which are protected.
TRAVEL
Visa-free deal extended
Taiwan and North Macedonia have agreed to extend their bilateral visa-free programs for another five years, from Tuesday until March 31, 2030, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said on Tuesday. Citizens from the two countries can visit each other’s territory without a visa for up to 90 days within any 180-day period, the MOFA said in a statement, adding that information has been updated on the Web sites of Taiwan’s and North Macedonia’s foreign ministries. The arrangement began in 2012. On the Taiwanese side, it still only applies to Taiwanese whose passport contains a national ID card number, according to the MOFA. Having a national ID card number means the passport holder has household registration in Taiwan, which guarantees civil and political rights. Some overseas citizens holding Republic of China (Taiwan) passports do not have household registration in Taiwan. The MOFA reminded nationals traveling to the landlocked country to follow local laws and regulations. For emergency services while in North Macedonia, Taiwanese should call Taiwan’s representative office in Italy in charge of North Macedonia affairs at +39-366-806-6434 or MOFA’s Taipei headquarters 24/7 emergency hotline at 0800-085-095.
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
Taiwan’s two cases of hantavirus so far this year are on par with previous years’ case numbers, and the government is coordinating rat extermination work, so there should not be any outbreaks, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said today in an interview with the Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper). An increase in rat sightings in Taipei and New Taipei City has raised concerns about the spread of hantavirus, as rats can carry the disease. In January, a man in his 70s who lived in Taipei’s Daan District (大安) tested positive posthumously for hantavirus, Taiwan’s
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