《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》Sindian gas blast kills two-year-old

SMELL TEST? The building manager accused the gas firm of failing to properly handle a suspected gas leak, which led to the explosion that injured 14

By Loa Iok-sin / Staff reporter

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A gas explosion ripped through an apartment building in New Taipei City’s Sindian District （新店） near noon yesterday, killing a two-year-old boy and injuring 14 others.

Immediately following the sound of the explosion, black smoke and flames were seen coming out of the third floor of an apartment building on Ankang Road in Sindian District, while broken glass and pieces of sand and concrete rained down on the street below. The force of the blast also broke the windows of buildings across the street.

People quickly ran out of the apartment and nearby buildings as fire trucks rushed to the scene.

Those who escaped said the blast felt “like a huge earthquake.”

A resident surnamed Kao （高） said the windows on the building’s first to sixth floors were shattered and glass shards flew as far as 10m from the site of the blast.

Firefighters soon put out the fire and conducted a floor-by-floor search. They found 14 injured people, including a rescue worker surnamed Chang （張）.

A two-year-old boy surnamed Chen （陳） was rushed to hospital, but was declared dead on arrival.

The New Taipei City Fire Department said the explosion occurred in the master bedroom of an apartment on the third floor of the building, where the two-year-old, his three-year-old sister and their grandmother were staying.

However, the fire chief said they were still investigating whether the leak came from the natural gas pipe leading into the apartment — which would be the responsibility of the gas company — or whether it occurred in the section of the pipe inside the apartment leading to the kitchen — which would be the responsibility of the residents.

At press time, the grandmother, who was sent to Wan Fang Hospital in Taipei, was unconscious. She has second-degree burns covering 90 percent of her body, as well as bone fractures, the fire department said.

The three-year-old girl is conscious, but has second-degree burns over 80 percent of her body. She is being treated at Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taipei, the department said.

The chief executive of the apartment building’s management committee, surnamed Lin （林）, accused Shin Shin Natural Gas Co （欣欣天然氣） of failing to properly handle a suspected natural gas leak on Thursday.

“Some residents said they could smell gas in the air at around 5pm yesterday [Thursday]. We immediately contacted Shin Shin and technicians from the company arrived at 5:25pm,” Lin said. “However, instead of using equipment for an inspection, they merely took a sniff and told us it was marsh gas and there was nothing to worry about.”

New Taipei City Deputy Mayor Hou You-yi （侯友宜）, who inspected the scene of the accident yesterday afternoon, promised that the city would pursue those responsible and make sure that residents could return home safely last night.

“The city government will launch a probe into the responsibility of Shin Shin Natural Gas and will refer the case to prosecutors to make sure that those who should be held responsible will not escape their responsibility,” he said.

（Additional reporting by CNA）

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES