A gas explosion caused the death of five people at the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Zhonggang Store in Taichung last month, the Fire Bureau said today, sending evidence to prosecutors for further investigation.
The explosion occurred on the 12th floor of the department store at 11:33am on Feb. 13, resulting in five fatalities and 26 injuries.
The Taichung Fire Bureau said in a news release today that it formed a special team to investigate the incident, conducting 13 inspections with nearly 100 investigators involved.
Photo: Taipei Times
After conducting on-site inspections, a committee of investigators, academics and experts unanimously agreed that the cause of the incident was a gas explosion, the bureau said.
The explosion affected the layout of the site, damaging pipelines and other potential evidence, making the investigation more difficult, it said.
The investigation team found various pieces of evidence at the site, including cigarette butts, electrical wires, gas pipes and a disc cutter, it added.
The bureau said it would deliver the investigation report, which confirms a gas explosion caused the incident, to the local prosecutors’ office and police precinct for further investigation.
Among the victims was a family of seven from Macau who were walking by the department store when the explosion occurred.
Both grandparents lost their lives in the incident, and a two-year-old girl succumbed to critical injuries on March 7 after being sent back to Macau for medical care on Feb. 26.
CHANGING LANDSCAPE: Many of the part-time programs for educators were no longer needed, as many teachers obtain a graduate degree before joining the workforce, experts said Taiwanese universities this year canceled 86 programs, Ministry of Education data showed, with educators attributing the closures to the nation’s low birthrate as well as shifting trends. Fifty-three of the shuttered programs were part-time postgraduate degree programs, about 62 percent of the total, the most in the past five years, the data showed. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) discontinued the most part-time master’s programs, at 16: chemistry, life science, earth science, physics, fine arts, music, special education, health promotion and health education, educational psychology and counseling, education, design, Chinese as a second language, library and information sciences, mechatronics engineering, history, physical education
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
Taiwan-based publisher Li Yanhe (李延賀) has been sentenced to three years in prison, fined 50,000 yuan (US$6,890) in personal assets and deprived political rights for one year for “inciting secession” in China, China's Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Chen Binhua (陳斌華) said today. The Shanghai First Intermediate People’s Court announced the verdict on Feb. 17, Chen said. The trial was conducted lawfully, and in an open and fair manner, he said, adding that the verdict has since come into legal effect. The defendant reportedly admitted guilt and would appeal within the statutory appeal period, he said, adding that the defendant and his family have
RSS