TRANSPORT
Bus accident injures 23
A shuttle bus carrying 33 people to a tourist destination in Yanmingshan National Park yesterday skidded and rolled, injuring 23 passengers. The No. 108 shuttle bus, which stops along destinations on the mountain, skidded at about 2:26pm, just before arriving in the Lengshuikeng (冷水坑) hot springs area, its terminal stop. The Taipei City Government Department of Transportation said all the injured passengers sustained grazes, with one suffering a fractured humerus, possibly requiring surgery. All the injured passengers were hospitalized. Nineteen of the injured passengers were foreigners, including six Malaysians, four Hong Kongers, two Filipinos, two Singaporeans, two Americans and three Chinese. No passengers were in a critical condition, the department said. A preliminary investigation by the police linked the accident to malfunctioning brakes.
TOURISM
Lighthouse opens to public
The century-old Fuguijiao Lighthouse (富貴角) on the nation’s northernmost point was opened to the public yesterday, with visitors to the lighthouse receiving a stamped souvenir certificate featuring the lighthouse. The 14.3m-tall lighthouse was built by Japanese for the construction of a submarine cable between Taiwan and Japan, and also to serve as a navigation aid. In 1962, the tower was renovated into an octagonal building and painted black and white. To promote the lighthouse as a tourist destination in the Guanyinshan National Scenic Area, the Tourism Bureau has sought to add more recreational facilities in neighboring areas. Several abandoned barracks nearby have been converted into an art center. The Tourism Bureau suggested that visitors can enjoy artistic programs in the art center, taste marine delicacies in the nearby Fuji Fishing Port (富基), and tour the unique lighthouse.
EDUCATION
Delayed school start backed
More than 90 percent of parents are in favor of delaying school start times so that children can get more sleep, according to the results of a survey released by Commonwealth Parenting magazine. Half of those in favor of the delay believe that getting enough sleep would keep children in good spirits and help them perform better academically. However, about 10 percent of parents did not support delaying school start times, saying that it would encourage children to go to bed later. The survey was conducted online between July 28 and Aug. 7, involving 1,996 parents. According to a study conducted in 2010 by the Sleep Center at Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, sixth-graders get an average of 8.7 hours of sleep on weekdays. However, senior-high school students get an average of 6.8 hours of sleep, far less than the US National Sleep Foundation’s recommendation of eight to 10 hours.
NATIONAL DEFENSE
Spy leader to be sentenced
Former People’s Liberation Army (PLA) officer Zheng Xiaojiang (鎮小江) and the spy ring he recruited, who were indicted by the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office for violating the National Security Act (國家安全法), are to be sentenced on Tuesday. After months of investigations, the office found that Zhen came to Taiwan in the name of sightseeing, but had actually sought to develop a network for espionage. Zhen was found to have recruited, among others, retired army major general Hsu Nai-chuan (許乃權), who had run for the Kinmen County commissioner’s office, but failed, and retired air force colonel Chou Chih-li (周自立).
DEFENSE: The National Security Bureau promised to expand communication and intelligence cooperation with global partners and enhance its strategic analytical skills China has not only increased military exercises and “gray zone” tactics against Taiwan this year, but also continues to recruit military personnel for espionage, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday in a report to the Legislative Yuan. The bureau submitted the report ahead of NSB Director-General Tsai Ming-yen’s (蔡明彥) appearance before the Foreign and National Defense Committee today. Last year, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted “Joint Sword-2024A and B” military exercises targeting Taiwan and carried out 40 combat readiness patrols, the bureau said. In addition, Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s airspace 3,070 times last year, up about
Taiwan is stepping up plans to create self-sufficient supply chains for combat drones and increase foreign orders from the US to counter China’s numerical superiority, a defense official said on Saturday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, the official said the nation’s armed forces are in agreement with US Admiral Samuel Paparo’s assessment that Taiwan’s military must be prepared to turn the nation’s waters into a “hellscape” for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Paparo, the commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, reiterated the concept during a Congressional hearing in Washington on Wednesday. He first coined the term in a security conference last
A magnitude 4.3 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 8:31am today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was located in Hualien County, about 70.3 kilometers south southwest of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 23.2km, according to the administration. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County, where it measured 3 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 2 in Hualien and Nantou counties, the CWA said.
The Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC) yesterday announced a fundraising campaign to support survivors of the magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck Myanmar on March 28, with two prayer events scheduled in Taipei and Taichung later this week. “While initial rescue operations have concluded [in Myanmar], many survivors are now facing increasingly difficult living conditions,” OCAC Minister Hsu Chia-ching (徐佳青) told a news conference in Taipei. The fundraising campaign, which runs through May 31, is focused on supporting the reconstruction of damaged overseas compatriot schools, assisting students from Myanmar in Taiwan, and providing essential items, such as drinking water, food and medical supplies,
RSS