WEATHER
Typhoon warning possible
The Central Weather Bureau (CWB) yesterday said it could issue a sea warning for Typhoon Khanun tomorrow, as the strengthening storm heads toward Japan’s Ryukyu Islands. As of 2pm, the center of Khanun, which formed in the west Pacific on Friday and strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, was 1,270km east-southeast of Taiwan’s southernmost tip, Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), moving at 24kph in a north-northwesterly direction, it said. Khanun had a radius of 220km and it was packing maximum sustained winds of 119kph with gusts of up to 155kph, the bureau said. While Khanun’s impact on Taiwan remains unclear, forecasters said that the outer rim of the typhoon could bring showers to northern and southern parts of the nation from tomorrow. The rain hot spots are likely to concentrate in central and southern Taiwan from Wednesday, the CWB said.
TRANSPORTATION
MRT to rent out umbrellas
Taipei MRT is to introduce an umbrella-sharing service in all its stations at the end of next month, the Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said on Thursday. The umbrella service is to be provided at the Taipei MRT’s 117 stations by Raingo, a contractor of the new sharing scheme, it said. The new service is planned to allow people to rent an umbrella and return it at a different MRT station, it said. The rental fee for an umbrella is planned to be set at NT$19 per hour with a 24-hour cap of NT$39, it said, adding that if the umbrella is not returned after one day, an additional NT$20 would be charged every 24 hours thereafter. The service could provide the company with an additional annual income of NT$3 million (US$95,572), TRTC said. After making a net profit of NT$189 million in 2019, the company posted annual losses ranging from NT$12 million to NT$514 million from 2020 to 2022.
DOMESTIC
Man drowns in north
A 43-year-old man died and three children were rescued in separate incidents on Taiwan’s northern coast yesterday, local authorities said. The New Taipei City Fire Department said it received a report at 11:46am about the possible drowning of a father and son at a beach near Wanli Fishing Port (萬里漁港). They found the 43-year-old father, surnamed Tsai (蔡), without vital signs and attempted to administer CPR, while the son was conscious. Both were transported by ambulance to Chang Gung Memorial Hospital’s branch in Keelung, where the father was pronounced dead, it said. The department said it had also responded to a separate drowning scare near Cape Fuguei (富貴角) Lighthouse in which two girls aged 11 and 9 were pulled out to sea by a large wave. By the time paramedics reached the area, a group of adults had already rescued the children. Both were later taken to be treated at Mackay Memorial Hospital’s Tamsui branch, it said.
Theaters and institutions in Taiwan have received 28 threatening e-mails, including bomb threats, since a documentary critical of China began being screened across the nation last month, the National Security Bureau said yesterday. The actions are part of China’s attempts to undermine Taiwan’s sovereignty, it said. State Organs (國有器官) documents allegations that Chinese government officials engage in organ harvesting and other illegal activities. From last month to Friday last week, 28 incidents have been reported of theaters or institutions receiving threats, including bomb and shooting threats, if they did not stop showing the documentary, the bureau said. Although the threats were not carried out,
‘GRAY ZONE’ TACTICS: China continues to build up its military capacity while regularly deploying jets and warships around Taiwan, with the latest balloon spotted on Sunday The US is drawing up contingency plans for military deployments in Japan and the Philippines in case of a Taiwan emergency, Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported. They would be incorporated in a first joint operation plan to be formulated in December, Kyodo reported late on Sunday, citing sources familiar with Japan-US relations. A US Marine Corps regiment that possesses High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems — a light multiple rocket launcher — would be deployed along the Nansei Island chain stretching from Kyushu to Yonaguni near Taiwan, Kyodo said. According to US military guidelines for dispatching marines in small formations to several locations,
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday confirmed that Chinese students visiting Taiwan at the invitation of the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation were almost all affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). During yesterday’s meeting convened by the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) asked whether the visit was a way to spread China’s so-called “united front” rhetoric, to which MAC Deputy Ministry Shen You-chung (沈有忠) responded with the CCP comment. The MAC noticed that the Chinese individuals visiting Taiwan, including those in sports, education, or religion, have had increasingly impressive backgrounds, demonstrating that the
As Taiwan celebrated its baseball team’s victory in the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s Premier12 on Sunday, how politicians referred to the team in their congratulatory messages reflected the nation’s political divide. Taiwan, competing under the name Chinese Taipei (中華台北隊), made history with its first-ever Premier12 championship after beating Japan 4-0 at the Tokyo Dome. Right after the game, President William Lai (賴清德) congratulated the team via a post on his Facebook page. Besides the players, Lai also lauded the team’s coaching and medical staff, and the fans cheering for them in Tokyo or watching the live broadcast, saying that “every
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