■ WEATHER
Nation gets first snowfall
PHOTO: CENTRAL WEATHER BUREAU
Visitors to Yushan (玉山) yesterday afternoon had a half-hour glimpse of the nation's first snowfall this winter. The Central Weather Bureau said the snowfall began at about 2:05pm and ended at 2:35pm. The depth of snow was less than 1cm. The temperature yesterday morning hit minus 3oC. At 3:30pm, however, the temperature rose slightly to minus 1oC. The bureau said the snowfall was brought by the accumulation of humidity and the arrival of a cold front. It said the weather would become drier once the frontal system had left Taiwan, with lower chances of snow.
■ CRIME
Smuggled cigarettes seized
Kaohsiung Port police seized more than 500 cases of smuggled foreign cigarettes, including some rare brands, aboard a local fishing boat at Kaohsiung Port on Sunday, police said yesterday. Police detained the ship captain and four crew members for questioning after discovering that the fishing gear on the boat had not been used during their 20-day fishing journey, police said. The captain, surnamed Tsai (蔡), claimed that all the fish caught over the past 20 days had been sold before they returned home. However, he could not say who the fish had been sold to or where the cigarettes had come from, police said, adding that they were still investigating.
■ CRIME
High Court rejects appeal
The Taiwan High Court yesterday rejected a request by Taipei prosecutors that a former agent of the Investigation Bureau arrested last Tuesday for allegedly sending threatening mail to the first family and a number of legislators and government officials be detained. The Taipei District Court on Friday rejected the request against Yang Ching-hai (楊清海) and released him on NT$100,000 bail. Taipei prosecutors immediately appealed the case, but the high court yesterday turned down the appeal. Yang was arrested last Tuesday at his residence in Taipei County, where police also found two pistols and 45 bullets. Police said Yang had sent a postcard threatening to sexually assault President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) daughter and to kidnap his grandsons.
■ EDUCATION
Fu Jen receives big donation
The Department of Chemistry at Fu Jen Catholic University in Taipei County received a donation of US$1.5 million from alumni earlier this month, the biggest donation ever made by alumni to any privately run university in Taiwan. Hsu Wen-hsien (許文賢), director of the university's Department of Chemistry, expressed his appreciation to the donors -- several Fu Jen alumni who preferred to remain anonymous -- and said the donation would be used to finance a foundation for the development of the department. Hsu said the interest from the donation would be used toward scholarships and to meet the costs of improving the department's teaching materials and research facilities. He said that his department has already received US$300,000 of the donation, which will be paid over five years.
An undersea cable to Penghu County has been severed, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said today, with a Chinese-funded ship suspected of being responsible. It comes just a month after a Chinese ship was suspected of severing an undersea cable north of Keelung Harbor. The National Communications and Cyber Security Center received a report at 3:03am today from Chunghwa Telecom that the No. 3 cable from Taiwan to Penghu was severed 14.7km off the coast of Tainan, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) upon receiving a report from Chunghwa Telecom began to monitor the Togolese-flagged Hong Tai (宏泰)
EVA Air is prohibiting the use of portable chargers on board all flights starting from Saturday, while China Airlines is advising passengers not to use them, following the lead of South Korean airlines. Current regulations prohibit portable chargers and lithium batteries from check-in luggage and require them to be properly packed in carry-on baggage, EVA Air said. To improve onboard safety, portable chargers and spare lithium batteries would be prohibited from use on all fights starting on Saturday, it said. Passengers are advised to fully charge electronic devices before boarding and use the AC and USB charging outlets at their seat, it said. South
Hong Kong-based American singer-songwriter Khalil Fong (方大同) has passed away at the age of 41, Fong’s record label confirmed yesterday. “With unwavering optimism in the face of a relentless illness for five years, Khalil Fong gently and gracefully bid farewell to this world on the morning of February 21, 2025, stepping into the next realm of existence to carry forward his purpose and dreams,” Fu Music wrote on the company’s official Facebook page. “The music and graphic novels he gifted to the world remain an eternal testament to his luminous spirit, a timeless treasure for generations to come,” it said. Although Fong’s
WAR SIMULATION: The developers of the board game ‘2045’ consulted experts and analysts, and made maps based on real-life Chinese People’s Liberation Army exercises To stop invading Chinese forces seizing Taiwan, board gamer Ruth Zhong chooses the nuclear option: Dropping an atomic bomb on Taipei to secure the nation’s freedom and her victory. The Taiwanese board game 2045 is a zero-sum contest of military strategy and individual self-interest that puts players on the front lines of a simulated Chinese attack. Their battlefield game tactics would determine the theoretical future of Taiwan, which in the real world faces the constant threat of a Chinese invasion. “The most interesting part of this game is that you have to make continuous decisions based on the evolving situation,
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