Yilan County

Train driver dies after being hit by freight train while crossing the tracks

police at scene of fatal train accident
Health and Safety 
Phillip Charlier 2 Comments , , ,

A train driver about to start his shift died after he was hit and run over by a freight train while he was crossing the tracks at Yilan Station yesterday, Wednesday evening, July 27. Liberty Times reported that the 51-year-old freight train driver, named Wu was crossing the tracks from Platform 2 to reach his train No.7,557 when he was hit by freight train No.7,556 as it entered the station at 8:33 pm. Firefighters said that Wu was obviously dead

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Northeast tuna season opens with first bluefin sold for more than NT$1.8 million

first Pacific bluefin tuna for 2022 season at Port of Su'ao Nanfang Harbor
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

The first Pacific bluefin tuna caught off Taiwan’s northeast coast this year sold at auction for a total price of NT$1,897,000 million at Nanfang Harbor, Port of Su’ao, in Yilan County this morning, April 21. The 271 kilogram fish opened with starting bid of NT$5,600 per kilogram, and was finally sold at NT$7,000 per kilogram to Taipei restaurant Sando House. The price was considerably lower than the NT$8,600 per kilo paid for the first catch last year, also purchased by

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Snake on a train: passengers evacuated after boa constrictor appears on luggage rack

snake on luggage rack on train
Animals 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , ,

Passengers were evacuated from a train car after a boa constrictor was spotted slithering along the luggage rack on a Taiwan Railways limited express train this morning, April 18. The conductor on the Ziqiang Class limited express No. 272 from Miaoli to Hualien received a report of a snake on the luggage racks of car No. 12 as the train arrived at Ruifang Station, New Taipei City at 8:19 am. The conductor ordered passengers out of the car and notified

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Art installation makes people blush? Expo organizer: “don’t think too much”

art installation featuring phallic cactus and yonic shell
Events 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment

An art installation at this year’s Yilan Green Expo has drawn media attention due to resemblance to male and female genitalia, but organizers dismissed criticisms with the Taiwanese adage “don’t think too much.” The installation, titled “Made in Heaven” in the Orchid Corridor consists of a combination including dolls posing around a phallic cactus planted beside a yonic sea shell. The chairman of the Yilan County Orchid Art Association told Liberty Times that the special shape does leave room for

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Indonesian caregiver sentenced to 1 year in prison for injuring employer who withheld her passport & air tickets

monitor footage screen grab of caregiver threatening patient
Society 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment

An Indonesian national employed as a caregiver in Yilan County was sentenced to serve one year in prison followed by deportation, after she held a knife to an elderly woman’s neck, causing injury, in an attempt to get her passport and air tickets back so that she could go home. According to the findings of the Yilan District Court, at around 3:30 am on August 8, 2021, 31-year-old Puji Lestari threatened the 81-year-old woman, named Wu, with a knife .

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Offshore earthquake rattles residents of northern and central Taiwan

earthquake map for 5.3 magnitude earthquake
Earthquakes 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

A 5.3 magnitude earthquake that struck off the coast of Yilan County on Taiwan’s northeastern coast was felt as a level 3 in parts of Yilan and Hsinchu counties, and a level 1 as far away as Chiayi County. At 9:05 pm, the tremblor struck 33.3 kilometers northeast from the Yilan County Government Office at a focal depth of 106 kilometers. According to Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau, the quake was felt with magnitudes as follow: [Level 3]: Niudou in Yilan

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Passersby spooked by banana bags at night

Odd News 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment

A resident of Yilan County uploaded pictures to social media after feeling spooked by what appeared to be ghostly human figures suspended in midair on a rural roadside in Wujie Township. The pictures were shared to the Facebook group “Yilan Knowledge +” as a warning in case people passing through the area at night get a fright. The spooky effigies turned out to be banana bunch covers used by a banana farmer to protect the ripening fruit. Banana bunch covers

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720 KG amphetamine haul intercepted at Yilan County fishing port

coast guard and police search fishing boat at Wushi Port
Drugs 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

Coast guard and police officers arrested three men after boarding a fishing boat and uncovering a 720 kilogram shipment of amphetamines at Wushi Port, Yilan County this afternoon, November 1. According to reports in United Daily News, the Taipei City Police Department Criminal Investigation Division received intelligence several days ago that the fishing vessel Zhenwang No. 2 was suspected to be involved in a smuggling operation. The police informed the Coast Guard Administration, and the vessel was kept under surveillance

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6.5 magnitude quake felt island-wide: no major damage reported

earthquake map
Earthquakes 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

A 6.5 magnitude earthquake in Taiwan’s northeastern Yilan County was felt island wide and caused minor delays in rail and metro services Sunday afternoon, but no major damage or casualties were reported. The quake struck at 1:11 pm at a depth of 68.6 kilometers, 22.7 kilometers south of the Yilan County Hall, according to data from the Central Weather Bureau (CWB). The maximum magnitude was felt as a magnitude 4 in Yilan County, Greater Taipei, Taoyuan County, and Hualien County.

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Execution style killing the 5th shooting case in Yilan in recent months

car of shooting victim
Violent Crimes 
Phillip Charlier 1 Comment , ,

One man died and another was injured after an execution-style shooting in Yilan County in the early hours of the morning today, October 19, and it is the 5th shooting case in the county in a little over two months. According to the investigation so far, at around 2:00 am this morning, a 23-year-old man, named Liu, followed a car driven by a 22-year-old man, named Luo, with whom Liu had a dispute over a debt. At the intersection of

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Train driver sentenced over derailment that took 18 lives, injured more than 200

Puyuma Express train derailed in Yilan County, Taiwan, October 21, 2018
Disaster 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

The driver of a train that derailed in Yilan County, Taiwan, in October 2018, was sentenced to a four-year, six-month prison term after being found guilty of professional negligence causing death, by the Yilan District Court today, Monday, October 18. The court found that Yu Chen-chung (尤振仲) was responsible for the inspection and passing of the Automatic Train Protection System (ATP), which Yu admitted he had turned off before the accident. The ATP was designed to automatically slow the train

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