Author: Phillip Charlier

More than 500 people evacuated after kitchen fire in luxury hotel

smoke from fire at Hotel Royal Ch
Fire 
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Three people sought medical treatment for smoke inhalation, and more than 500 guests, visitors, and staff were evacuated from a luxury hot springs hotel in Yilan County last night after a fire broke out in a basement-level kitchen. Yilan County Fire Department received reports of a fire at the Hotel Royal Chiao Hsi in Jiaoxi Township at around 7:30pm yesterday, Thursday, March 9. The hotel’s marketing and public relations manager told media that all 438 guests, 30 restaurant customers, and

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Army, Navy joint military exercises at key strategic beach on Taiwan’s northwest coast

composite image showing army troops on shore and naval vessel during military exercise
Military Affairs 
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A Taiwan ROC Navy Tank landing ship maneuvered close to a beach in Taoyuan City identified as a key strategic landing beach if the PLA were to launch an invasion, during joint army-navy combat drills yesterday, March 8. Zhuwei Beach, adjacent to Zhuwei Fishing Port, is one of 14 beaches labeled as “red beaches” in Ian Easton’s 2017 book, The Chinese Invasion Threat: Taiwan’s Defense and American Strategy in Asia. The beaches mentioned in Easton’s book include Jinshan (North), Jinshan

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Taiwanese fishing boat found capsized in the Indian Ocean: crew of 16 missing

Sheng Feng No. 128
Marine and Fisheries 
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A Taiwanese fishing boat reported missing February 23 has been found overturned in waters off Mauritius, but divers found no sign of crew, according to media reports Thursday, March 2. Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture Fisheries Agency received confirmation from Mauritian authorities that the Kaohsiung-registered Lien Sheng Fa was located 490 nautical miles northeast of Port Louis, Mauritius. Mauritian search and rescue personnel reached the vessel at 6:00 am yesterday, March 2, and divers conducted an underwater examination of the boat,

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Factory fire leads to school evacuation, classes suspended for one day

Plume of thick, black smoke from fire at tire recycling plant
Fire 
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An elementary school was evacuated yesterday, and classes will be suspended today, after a fire in a nearby tire recycling factory emitted a plume of thick, black, toxic-smelling smoke in Bali District, New Taipei City. The New Taipei City Fire Department received reports of a fire at the Xianxiang Technology Company tire recycling factory on Guanhai Avenue at 1:52 pm. 72 vehicles and 155 personnel were dispatched to deal with the fire. Four employees were sent to hospital with minor

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National rowing champ dies after crashing scooter, falling into 14-meter-deep sewer construction pit

sewer construction pit
Traffic Accidents 
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A 28-year-old athlete who won gold at the 2018 Asian Games was found dead at the bottom of a sewer construction pit five hours after he crashed his scooter in Taoyuan City, yesterday, February 16. Construction workers arriving at the work site on Guoji Road at around 8:30 am Thursday morning found signs that someone had crashed through the construction fence. After noticing that the anti-fall safety net was also broken, the workers immediately started pumping water out of the

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5 suspects involved in viral road rage incident arrested

composite image of suspect wielding baseball bat and flanked by police after arrestect wielding basebal
Violent Crimes 
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Five men suspected to have smashed the windshield of a truck in a road rage incident in New Taipei City have been arrested after video footage of the incident went viral on social media. According to media reports, the five men were part of a group of more than 10 who were traveling from southern Taiwan’s Chiayi County in three cars when the incident occurred at the Sanxia Interchange on Friday, February 3, at around 3:00 pm. Dashcam footage from

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Puppy “adopted” by monkey so cute: but this story does not have a happy ending

A Formosan macaque holds a puppy while eating a banana
Animals 
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An abandoned pup which appeared to have been adopted by a Formosan macaque in Chiayi County was found dead several days after local residents attempted to stop animal rescue workers from separating the unlikely pair. The male Formosan macaque had been resident in the vicinity of Dongshi Bridge in Dongshi Township for more than a year. As the coastal township is outside the natural range of macaques, and the normally social animal lived alone, animal welfare workers suspect that the

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Police seize submachine gun in Taichung City

Škorpion vz. 61 submachine gun
Crime and Criminals 
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A man in Taichung City has been charged for offenses under the Control of Guns, Ammunition, and Knives Act after police found a Czech-made submachine gun in his possession. Taichung City Police Department Criminal investigation Corps said that during a drug trafficking investigation they had received information that a man named Ho was armed with a submachine gun. Police obtained a search warrant and pulled Ho’s vehicle over on Chaoma Road in Xitun District. A search of Ho’s car turned

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Driver crashes into traffic sign then continues driving with sign stuck on car

composite image showing car driven with road sign stuck to it
Traffic Accidents 
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Road users in Taichung City and Changhua County were stunned to see a car being driven on an expressway with a traffic divider sign mounted on the hood earlier this week, and a man went to a police station today to explain what had happened after seeing the story reported on TV news. Multiple drivers uploaded video footage to social media of an SUV on Provincial Highway 74 heading southbound with the traffic divider stuck to the front of the

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Air Force plane makes emergency belly landing in southern Taiwan

early warning aircraft after emergency belly landing
Military Affairs 
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All crew members are safe after an emergency belly-landing of E-2K early warning aircraft in Pingtung County this morning, November 25, Taiwan’s Air Force Command said in a press release. According to reports, the E-2K belonging to the Early Warning Aircraft 2nd Squadron of the Electronic Warfare Brigade departed at 9:50 am on a routine training mission. When preparing to land shortly after 11:00 am, an abnormality in the landing gear was reported. Flight officer, Major Chang Wei-ye, landed the

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