Lin Hung-sen (林鴻森), the owner of a Taoyuan excavation company who volunteered to help with cleanup efforts in Hualien County’s flood-hit Guangfu Township (光復), died late on Monday following complications from an infected wound, a funeral services operator said yesterday.
Lin was 48.
Lin on Sept. 24 traveled to Hualien, one day after a barrier lake burst on the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) amid Super Typhoon Ragasa, said Lin Yi-hua (林奕華), who is handling Lin Hung-sen’s funeral arrangements.
Photo courtesy of Lin Hung-sen’s family
Water from the burst lake, as well as mud and debris, inundated Guangfu, prompting an influx of volunteers to travel to the region as the scale of the cleanup operation became clear.
Lin Hung-sen and his nephew transported two Bobcat skid-steer loaders to Guangfu to help clear the mud and debris, the funeral operator said.
While working, Lin Hung-sen sustained a cut on his left leg, but continued working, even as his limb swelled, he said.
After eight days, he finally agreed to seek medical attention for his injury and was taken by ambulance to Hualien’s Mennonite Christian Hospital, Lin Yi-hua said.
Lin Hung-sen was diagnosed with an infected wound and his condition was initially listed as stable, he said.
However, on Saturday he was transferred to Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taoyuan, after which he lost consciousness, the funeral operator said, citing what he had heard from Lin Hung-sen’s family.
Over the weekend, Lin Hung-sen’s condition deteriorated, he said.
He died on Monday night from multiple organ failure brought on by sepsis, he added.
Government officials paid tribute to Lin Hung-sen, calling him a representative of the thousands of “shovel superheroes” who have volunteered to help clean up Guangfu since the disaster.
President William Lai (賴清德) said he was “deeply saddened” to learn of Lin Hung-sen’s death and expressed his condolences to his family.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) also expressed the government’s regret over his passing.
Chi Lien-cheng (季連成), chief coordinator at the Central Emergency Operation Center, said that a deputy health minister was to visit Lin Hung-sen’s family and give them a NT$200,000 consolation payment.
Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) plans to attend the funeral to extend the government’s condolences and gratitude, Chi said.
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 8:39pm tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The epicenter was 38.7km east-northeast of Yilan County Hall at a focal depth of 98.3km, the CWA’s Seismological Center said. The quake’s maximum intensity, which gauges the actual physical effect of a seismic event, was a level 4 on Taiwan’s 7-tier intensity scale, the center said. That intensity level was recorded in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳), Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township (關西), Nantou County’s Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Hualien County’s Yanliao (鹽寮). An intensity of 3 was
Instead of focusing solely on the threat of a full-scale military invasion, the US and its allies must prepare for a potential Chinese “quarantine” of Taiwan enforced through customs inspections, Stanford University Hoover fellow Eyck Freymann said in a Foreign Affairs article published on Wednesday. China could use various “gray zone” tactics in “reconfiguring the regional and ultimately the global economic order without a war,” said Freymann, who is also a nonresident research fellow at the US Naval War College. China might seize control of Taiwan’s links to the outside world by requiring all flights and ships entering or leaving Taiwan
The next minimum wage hike is expected to exceed NT$30,000, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday during an award ceremony honoring “model workers,” including migrant workers, at the Presidential Office ahead of Workers’ Day today. Lai said he wished to thank the awardees on behalf of the nation and extend his most sincere respect for their hard work, on which Taiwan’s prosperity has been built. Lai specifically thanked 10 migrant workers selected for the award, saying that although they left their home countries to further their own goals, their efforts have benefited Taiwan as well. The nation’s industrial sector and small businesses lay
Quarantine awareness posters at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport have gone viral for their use of wordplay. Issued by the airport branch of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency, the posters feature sniffer dogs making a range of facial expressions, paired with advisory messages built around homophones. “We update the messages for holidays and campaign needs, periodically refreshing materials to attract people’s attention,” quarantine officials said. “The aim is to use the dogs’ appeal to draw focus to quarantine regulations.” A Japanese traveler visiting Taiwan has posted a photo on X of a poster showing a quarantine dog with a
RSS