Renovations in the food court of a Taichung shopping mall were likely “highly related” to an explosion that killed four people on Thursday, the National Fire Agency said yesterday.
An apparent gas explosion on the 12th floor of the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang department store in Taichung at 11:33am on Thursday resulted in four deaths and 38 injuries.
Citing witness testimony, the agency yesterday said that an engineer saw a worker using a grinder to cut a gas pipeline.
Photo courtesy of the Taichung Fire Bureau
Someone had asked about the location of the gas valve, it said, adding that witnesses reported smelling gas 20 minutes before the explosion.
The operator of the store on Jan. 25 sent a request to Shin Kong Mitsukoshi’s Taipei headquarters to conduct renovations on the 12th floor from Monday to March 12, the agency said.
As it had not yet received approval, it did not apply with the local fire department before starting renovations as planned, it added.
Firefighting equipment, including the gas leak prevention system, was shut off at the time of the explosion, which contravenes standard construction procedures, Taichung Fire Bureau Chief Sun Fu-yu (孫福佑) said, adding that a fine of NT$30,000 would be imposed in accordance with the Fire Services Act (消防法).
The Taichung Police Department on Thursday summoned 20 department store employees, construction workers and Shin Chung Natural Gas employees for questioning.
Sixteen of the people were then sent to the Taichung District Prosecutors’ Office for further questioning and were released as witnesses, prosecutors said.
The other four were allowed to leave without further questioning.
The party responsible for the incident is yet to be determined, but the investigation will continue, prosecutors said.
None of the people questioned have been named as defendants or had punishments imposed, they added.
Shin Chung Natural Gas in a statement on Thursday said that the incident was unrelated to the company or natural gas.
Meanwhile, extended family members of a family from Macau who were injured by the explosion came to Taiwan yesterday, the Mainland Affairs Council said.
The family of seven was passing the department store when they were struck by falling debris, killing the grandparents and seriously injuring the two-year-old granddaughter, with the rest of the family incurring lighter injuries.
The girl underwent an emergency craniotomy due to severe brain injuries and remains in intensive care, China Medical University Children’s Hospital said yesterday.
She currently has a Glasgow Coma Scale score of 3, the hospital said. The scale ranges from 3 to 15, with 3 indicating complete unresponsiveness and 15 full responsiveness.
The next seven days would be crucial for her recovery, the hospital said.
The Macau government was immediately informed of the incident, the council said, adding that council personnel were also sent to Taichung to visit the injured people.
The government would assist with the family’s entry to Taiwan, visa situation, medical treatment, document verification, funeral arrangements and whatever else they require, it said.
Macau Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai (岑浩輝) in a speech on Thursday night extended his deepest condolences to the families of those who died in the incident.
Staff from Macau’s tourism crisis assistance team, accompanied by Macau Red Cross staff, have contacted the family to provide necessary assistance, the Macau Government Information Bureau said.
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday expressed his deepest condolences to those affected by the explosion.
He said he instructed Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) to oversee relevant agencies in assisting the Taichung City Government to resolve any issues.
Cho yesterday visited the regional branch of the Workforce Development Agency to hear briefings on the rescue and response efforts.
Shin Kong Mitsukoshi in a second statement yesterday afternoon apologized to the public and accepted full responsibility for the incident.
It said it would cooperate with the investigation and has established an emergency response team to assist the families of victims, affected employees and stores.
It also vowed to implement flexible working arrangements to ensure that employees’ salaries and benefits remain unaffected.
Additional reporting by Tsai Shu-yuan, Chang Jui-chen and Su Meng-chuan
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