A gas explosion at a kitchen run by Shan An Co (膳安公司) — which specializes in producing food for new mothers under the brand name Yu Shan Fang (玉膳坊) — caused extensive damage and injured 12 people in New Taipei’s Wugu District (五股) yesterday, investigators said.
New Taipei City Fire Department investigators said they found 20 liquefied natural gas (LNG) cylinders in the basement.
Nine of the 50kg canisters were connected to the kitchen upstairs and thought to be in use at the time of the explosion, investigators said, adding that two were empty, and the other nine had either been disconnected or turned off.
Photo: CNA
The company is suspected of refilling the cylinders without a business permit, fire department official Chen Chih-wei (陳志瑋) said.
“Filling and distribution of gas cylinders can only be done by licensed businesses. We plan to focus our investigation on whether the company hired workers to fill containers with gas for use in the basement,” Chen said. “It is possible that valves or the pipes themselves leaked gas.”
“If illegal operations have taken place, we will fine the company,” he added.
Local media reports said that the company was able to store 900kg of LNGin the basement and it that had employed people to refill empty cylinders.
After the injured people were transported to nearby hospitals, investigators entered the basement, where they said they discovered an area of about 10m2 littered with gas cylinders and still ablaze.
A company employee reportedly told investigators that one of the cylinders was being refilled when a leak occurred and spark ignited an explosion.
Investigators were also reportedly trying to determine whether a gas leak might have resulted from a loose connector valve.
The injured people — five men and seven women — were taken to several hospitals in New Taipei City and Taipei, firefighters said.
A man in his 50s suffered 27 percent burns to his face, back and upper limbs and was rushed to New Taipei City Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, the firefighters said.
The man was in stable condition as of press time last night.
The other injuries were mostly lacerations, the firefighters said.
Additional reporting by CNA
ONE LAST TALK: While Xi said that Taiwan was a ‘red line,’ Biden, in what is likely his last meeting with Xi as president, called for an end to China’s military activity around Taiwan China’s military intimidation and economic coercion against Taiwan are the main causes of tensions that are destabilizing peace in the Taiwan Strait, Taipei said yesterday while thanking US President Joe Biden for expressing Washington’s firm stance of maintaining peace and stability in the region. Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) met on Saturday for their third meeting and their first talks in seven months on the sidelines of the APEC forum in Lima, Peru. It was likely Biden’s last meeting as president with Xi. During their conversation, Biden reiterated the US’ opposition to any unilateral change to the “status quo” from either
Taiwan would participate in the 2026 APEC summit to be hosted by China after Beijing promised it would ensure the personal safety of attendees, Taiwanese national security sources said yesterday. The APEC Leaders’ Machu Picchu Declaration announced yesterday said that China would host the APEC summit in 2026. Beijing proposed hosting the summit shortly before this year’s gathering began on Friday, a national security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Many APEC members expressed concerns about China hosting the event and said that prior communication over the decision was insufficient, the official said. Taiwan brought up concerns about legal “guidelines” China announced in
SUPPORT: Arms sales to NATO Plus countries such as Japan, South Korea and Israel only have to be approved by the US Congress if they exceed US$25m The US should amend a law to add Taiwan to the list of “NATO Plus” allies and streamline future arms sales, a US commission said on Tuesday in its annual report to the US Congress. The recommendation was made in the annual report by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), which contained chapters on US-China economic and trade ties, security relations, and Taiwan and Hong Kong. In the chapter on Taiwan, the commission urged the US Congress to “amend the Arms Export Control Act of 1976 to include Taiwan on the list of ‘NATO Plus’ recipients,” referring to
MEET AND GREET: The White House, which called the interaction ‘just a handshake,’ did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Biden planned to visit Taiwan’s envoy to the APEC summit, Lin Hsin-i (林信義), on Friday invited US President Joe Biden to visit Taiwan. During the APEC Leaders’ Informal Dialogue, Lin, who represented President William Lai (賴清德) at the summit, spoke with Biden and expressed gratitude to the outgoing US president for his contribution to improving bilateral ties between Taipei and Washington over the past four years, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Lin and Biden exchanged views during the conversation, with Lin extending an invitation to Biden to visit Taiwan, it said. Biden is to step down in January next year, when US president-elect Donald Trump is
RSS