The last patient injured in a deadly dust explosion at the Formosa Fun Coast (八仙海岸) water park in New Taipei City’s Bali District (八里) on June 27 last year was discharged from hospital earlier this month, while recovery for the hundreds of people injured in the incident continues, health authorities said yesterday, six days ahead of the one-year anniversary of the disaster.
The patient, a 21-year-old man with burns covering 90 percent of his body, was discharged on June 3 after receiving treatment at two hospitals in Taipei for a total of 341 days, the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) said.
NHIA official Chang Wen-wen (張溫溫) said the man underwent several skin grafts and physical therapy on his joints.
The blast at the water park occurred when colored cornstarch powder, used for party effects, exploded and burst into flames, engulfing partygoers.
A total of 508 people were injured and 15 died from their injuries.
According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, 281 of the victims sustained burns that covered more than 40 percent of their bodies, including 41 people with burns to more than 80 percent of their bodies.
The National Health Insurance program has paid more than NT$765 million (US$23.73 million) to cover the victims’ medical costs, Chang said.
Meanwhile, the NHIA has filed a lawsuit against the party’s organizers and other related parties with the Shilin District Court as it seeks NT$436 million in compensation to cover the costs incurred in the first month after the accident, Chang said.
The case has yet to come before the court, she added.
In April, Lu Chung-chi (呂忠吉), the head of the local firm that organized the Color Play Asia party at the water park, was found guilty of negligence causing death and injury and was sentenced by the Shilin court to four years and 10 months in prison.
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “(we) appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
ON PAROLE: The 73-year-old suspect has a criminal record of rape committed when he was serving in the military, as well as robbery and theft, police said The Kaohsiung District Court yesterday approved the detention of a 73-year-old man for allegedly murdering three women. The suspect, surnamed Chang (張), was arrested on Wednesday evening in connection with the death of a 71-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙). The Kaohsiung City Police Department yesterday also unveiled the identities of two other possible victims in the serial killing case, a 75-year-old woman surnamed Huang (黃), the suspect’s sister-in-law, and a 75-year-old woman surnamed Chang (張), who is not related to the suspect. The case came to light when Chao disappeared after taking the suspect back to his residence on Sunday. Police, upon reviewing CCTV
TRUMP ERA: The change has sparked speculation on whether it was related to the new US president’s plan to dismiss more than 1,000 Joe Biden-era appointees The US government has declined to comment on a post that indicated the departure of Laura Rosenberger as chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Neither the US Department of State nor the AIT has responded to the Central News Agency’s questions on the matter, after Rosenberger was listed as a former chair on the AIT’s official Web site, with her tenure marked as 2023 to this year. US officials have said previously that they usually do not comment on personnel changes within the government. Rosenberger was appointed head of the AIT in 2023, during the administration of former US president Joe
RSS