6 firefighters perish in
Taoyuan blaze
By Amy Chyan, The China
Six young firefighters perished in the line of duty in
the early hours of yesterday morning while trying to fight a blaze at a bowling
alley located in Taoyuan's Xinwu District.
Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) held a meeting in response to the Xinwu fire, and said
he estimated that each deceased fireman's family will be receiving a NT$19
million pension.
Responding to the bowling alley's architectural,
operational and land use violations, Cheng said that a heavy punishment will be
meted out. In addition, Cheng promised to tear down all of the city's illegal
structures to avoid future public safety disasters.
The Taoyuan City Government has created an emergency
group to help families with funeral plans.
Families of the deceased arrived on the scene with
Buddhist priests to summon the souls of the firemen in a spiritual ceremony.
Second Floor Culprit
Built from metal sheets and wooden beams, the three-story
bowling alley experienced a powerful explosion after the fire was subdued. The
unexpected explosion trapped the firemen, which led to their deaths.
Initial investigations concluded that the fire started on
the second floor, with the source of the blaze thought to be the transformer
box.
Two brothers, surnamed Liu, who owned the business
escaped the fire uninjured. The 52-year-old elder brother was a volunteer
firefighter and helped combat the deadly blaze.
The Liu brothers were summoned by police for
interrogation and have agreed to cooperate with the prosecutors' investigation.
Timeline of Fire
Citizens informed firefighters of the overwhelming blaze
at the Xinwu bowling alley at 2:02 a .m.
The Taoyuan Fire Department sent out 99 fire and police personnel to the scene.
The fire was under control by 2:29 a .m. though half an hour later, disaster struck as
an explosion trapped members of the firefighting crew after the second floor
once again burst into flames.
By 3:46 a .m.,
six firemen were confirmed to be missing.
The six firemen who died are 26-year-old Chen Feng-hsiang
(陳鳳翔), 22-year-old Chen Yen-ming (陳彥茗), 21-year-old Tsai Chang-jung (蔡長融), 22-year-old Chang Kuei-chang (張桂彰), 27-year-old Tseng Chung-jen (曾重仁) and the eldest of the group Hsieh Chun-chieh (謝君杰) who was 29 years old.
After receiving news that their colleagues had died in
the fire, remaining fire department personal on scene mourned by calling out
“Mission's complete, time to go home,” as a gesture of respect.
DNA Testing To Confirm Identity
Family members of the late firemen arrived to the
hospital heartbroken and inconsolable.
Taoyuan General Hospital Sinwu Branch's (桃園醫院新屋分院) Superintendent Chen Rui-chang (陳瑞昌) confirmed that the six men arrived at the hospital with
no vital signs.
According to prosecutors, the bodies of the firemen are
unrecognizable from the fire and their identities will have to be confirmed
through DNA testing as well as the matching of uniforms and protective gear.
(Resource: http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/local/taoyuan/2015/01/21 /427026/p2/6-firefighters.htm)
structure
who- Six young firefighters
when- yesterday morning
where- Taoyuan's Xinwu District
why- While trying to fight a blaze at a bowling alley.
what- Six young firefighters perished in the line of duty.
After I learned the news, I felt so sorrowful and thought the six young firefighters who perished are worth respecting. Also, firefighters ought to be more careful in such a dangerous place and have keen observation to avoid accidents.
回覆刪除It is sad to hear the news. Every job is worthy of our respect and honor, like those six firefighters in this news. Thanks for those running a risk of saving people's lives and try to do their best to help people.
回覆刪除Government should give firefighters more fund to buy new facilities and their clothes.I think this can make firefighters be safer when saving others. I hope the tragedy won't happen again.
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