A news van of Sanlih E-Television (SET-TV) News crashed into a Changhua Bank branch on the corner of Yijiang Street and Nanjing E Road in Taipei yesterday afternoon, injuring 10 people, including three who were being treated for severe injuries at press time last night.
Preliminary investigations conducted by the Taipei City Police Department’s Zhongshan Precinct indicate the truck suddenly picked up speed and rammed into the bank.
The exact cause of the crash remained under investigation.
Photo: Lo Pei-de, Taipei Times
Among the critically injured are a 40-year-old woman surnamed Wu (吳) and a 40-year-old man surnamed Chien (簡), who were both unconscious when they were sent to National Taiwan University Hospital, emergency responders said.
Chien suffered cerebral and hepatic hemorrhage, zygomatic fracture, and collapsed lungs, the hospital said, adding that both patients have since regained consciousness and are
undergoing treatment.
Other injured, included pedestrians, customers and bank staff, suffered cuts and bruises, according to emergency responders, who were alerted at 3:10pm to the incident.
The driver, Lin Ting-fang (林庭芳) sustained light injuries, police said, adding that his alcohol breath test was clean.
Lin was quoted by police as saying during questioning that the engine suddenly revved up, while admitting that he might have also been “spacing out” a little before crashing into the bank.
The Taipei Department of Labor said that to verify the driver’s work schedule, it has asked the employer to provide attendance records, and would arrange labor inspections and interviews for further verification.
Sanlih E-Television News issued a statement yesterday saying that it has dispatched representatives to visit the injured to express its well-wishes, and would assist them and their families with arrangements for medical care and subsequent matters.
The company said it would fully cooperate with police investigations to determine how the incident occurred.
It would also form a task force to conduct a general review of interview and news truck management processes, as well as to look into vehicle safety and maintenance records and driver attendance mechanisms to ensure the safety of the reporting crew, the company said.
Additional reporting by CNA
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