Author: Phillip Charlier

Taiwan shipbuilder demonstrates self-righting ship

self-righting ship demonstration
Business and Economy 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

Taiwan shipbuilder Longteh Shipbuilding Company successfully tested a self-righting ship on April 17. Longteh confirmed the news after a video of the ship launch went viral on social media, according to reports today, April 24. Longteh said the test was performed at the Port of Su’ao in Yilan County. Video footage of the test shows the ship being turned upside down in the water before automatically righting itself in less than 10 seconds. Longteh, which is a major shipping manufacturer

Read more

Minor collision turns to tragedy after truck plows into crashed vehicles

scene of accident and fire
Traffic Accidents 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

Two drivers who got out of their vehicles after a collision on Highway 1 died, and a passenger was injured, after a semi-trailer crashed into them in Changhua County early this morning, April 24. The Changhua County Fire Department received reports that vehicles were on fire after a collision at the 213-kilometer mark in the northbound lanes on National Highway 1 in Xihu Township at around 3:00 am. Nine vehicles and 19 personnel were dispatched to the scene of the

Read more

Taiwan’s east coast rocked by 95 earthquakes overnight: largest magnitude 6.3

Fukai Hotel tilting dangerously after earthquake
Earthquakes 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

Work and classes are suspended in Hualien County today after 95 earthquakes occurred between midnight and 7:30 a.m., keeping many residents awake all night, and leaving two buildings tilting dangerously. According to the Central Weather Administration, more than 1,000 aftershocks have occurred since a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck the area on April 3. Of the 95 earthquakes that occurred this morning, two earthquakes of 6.0 magnitude or greater occurred just five minutes apart at around 2:30 a.m. The Fukai Hotel

Read more

Rainy season front brings heavy rain to Taiwan: East coast road and rail links cut by landslides

landslide blocks east coast line at Chongde Station
Weather 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , ,

A rainy season front is expected to bring heavy rain to Taiwan for the next week, and has already triggered landslides in areas destabilized by an earthquake earlier this month. Road and rail services between Yilan County and Hualien City are cut off after a series of landslides in Xiulin Township, Hualien County this afternoon. According to Taiwan Railway Corporation, a landslide has covered both northbound and southbound tracks between Chongde Station and Heren Station. An EMU 3000 express train

Read more

Driver charged after girlfriend jumps out of moving car and dies

woman jumps from moving car
Traffic Accidents 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment

A man has been charged with negligent homicide after his girlfriend jumped out of his moving car and died in Taoyuan City two days ago. According to reports, the 49-year-old woman, named Zeng, and her 47-year-old boyfriend, named Song, left a party in the early hours of the morning April 15. While driving on Wenlin Road in Guanyin District, the couple had an argument over “trivial matters.” Zeng then opened the car door and jumped out. Video footage of the

Read more

Nanny and her sister charged for fatal abuse of 1-year-old child

sisters charged in fatal child abuse case
Society 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

Two sisters have been formally charged after a months-long investigation into the abuse and death of a one-year-old child placed in their care late last year. According to the investigation, the Child Welfare League Foundation (CWLF) placed the child in the full-time foster care of a registered nanny named Liu Tsai-hsuan at her home in Wenshan District, Taipei City, in September 2023. On December 24, Liu took the child to hospital claiming that he had choked on milk. The child

Read more

Flight delayed for 54 minutes after bees swarm aircraft at Kinmen Airport

bees swarm on propeller at Kinmen Airport
Aviation 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

A flight from Kinmen Airport to Taipei was delayed for 54 minutes after a swarm of bees descended on the airplane, stinging one passenger and two ground staff yesterday, April 14. According to United Daily News, 70 passengers were about to board Mandarin Airlines Flight AE-1272 when bees began to swarm around the aircraft shortly after 3:00 pm. After one of the passengers and two ground crew members were stung, airport administration ordered the passengers to return to the departure

Read more

Express train derailed by fallen rock as earthquake aftershocks continue to rattle Taiwan’s east coast

damaged derailed Puyuma express train
Earthquakes 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , ,

An express train bound for Taipei City derailed after hitting a boulder that fell onto the tracks in last night, but fortunately nobody was injured in the accident. According to reports, the Puyuma express train #445 from Taitung to New Taipei City hit a boulder and derailed near Heping Train Station in Xiulin Township in Hualien County at 9:10 pm. The accident caused traffic in both directions of the railway to be stopped. None of the 146 passengers or staff

Read more

Big earthquake on Taiwan’s east coast felt across island: reports of damage and casualties

partially collapsed building in Hualien City
Earthquakes 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

Story still being revised and updated: 12:58 pm. Four people have died, and 98 are injured. Many people heading to work and school around Taiwan this morning had their morning commute interrupted when a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck the east coast, causing shockwaves that shut down train and metro services in the capital Taipei and other cities. According to Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration, the earthquake struck at 7:58 am, at a depth of 15.5 kilometers, 25 kilometers south-southeast of Hualien

Read more

Australian woman charged after airport customs finds large quantity of heroin in suitcase

handcuffed suspect led by police
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

A 60-year-old Australian woman has been charged for attempting to smuggle nearly 7 kilograms of heroin into Taiwan via Taoyuan International Airport. Taiwan’s Aviation Police Bureau announced today that the woman was arrested at Taoyuan International Airport in December 2023 when customs officers found a package containing 6.926 kilograms of heroin in her suitcase. According to the police press release, customs officers spotted abnormalities in the suitcase during an X-ray inspection of inbound luggage. Customs officers waited until the woman

Read more

Bus accident leaves one dead, 14 injured in Kaohsiung City

damaged bus
Traffic Accidents 
Phillip Charlier 1 Comment ,

One man died at the scene, and 14 people were injured, after a bus crashed into the roof of an underpass designed exclusively for motorcycles in Kaohsiung City yesterday, March 20. According to reports, at around 8:25 pm Wednesday, the 56-year-old driver named Deng (鄧) drove a double-deck tour bus in the motorcycle lane of a freeway underpass on Shuiguan Road in Renwu District, apparently ignoring height limit warning signs. Deng, sitting in the lower deck driver compartment, drove the

Read more