TAICHUNG, Taiwan — A devastating gas explosion at the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi department store in Taichung City on Thursday morning has left four people dead and 29 injured. The incident occurred around 11:30 a.m. on the 12th floor of the 14-story building amid ongoing renovation work, just as lunchtime crowds began to gather.
Among the deceased were two tourists from Macau, a local store employee, and a construction worker involved in the site’s renovations. Additionally, five other Macau visitors sustained injuries in the explosion, which necessitated the evacuation of some 200 individuals from the premises.
Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen, who felt the explosion’s force from her office nearby, said that emergency response teams were promptly deployed and asked for the public’s understanding to ensure their efforts were not hindered. Over 130 firefighters, supported by 50 vehicles, rushed to the scene, where search and rescue operations were bolstered by 136 personnel utilizing dogs and drones to navigate the extensively damaged building.
Eyewitnesses described a harrowing scene where four individuals were seen ejected from the windows of the 12th floor as smoke enveloped the upper levels of the building. Debris from shattered windows and building materials littered the surrounding streets, marking a perimeter of chaos around the impacted area.
Richard Wu, the president of Shin Kong Mitsukoshi, expressed his dismay over the event and committed to corporate accountability. “The company will fully take responsibility for its role in this tragic event,” Wu stated, indicating a readiness to support ongoing investigations and affected individuals.
Initial reports suggest that the explosion might have been triggered by unsafe work practices during the renovation process. Witnesses reported seeing a worker using a grinder on a gas pipeline just moments before the blast. It has also come to light that the store management failed to secure appropriate permits or notify local fire services before commencing work, further indicating lapses in safety protocols.
Among the injured is a two-year-old girl from Macau, who suffered severe injuries. Local authorities, alongside Taiwan’s Ministry of Health and Welfare, are actively coordinating to provide necessary medical support to her and other victims. “We are mobilizing medical resources to ensure the injured receive the best possible care promptly,” Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te said in a statement.
The store, a cooperative venture between Taiwan’s Shin Kong Group and Japan’s Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd., has been instructed by the Taichung city government to halt operations until it can confirm the building’s safety. The ongoing in-depth investigation involves multiple government bodies, aiming to ascertain the precise cause of the explosion.
This tragic event follows closely on the heels of another industrial disaster in Taichung less than two months prior, where a fire at a food-processing plant was traced back to unsafe welding practices. This recurring theme of industrial accidents highlights ongoing issues regarding safety standards and enforcement in the region, prompting calls for stricter oversight and preventive measures in industrial and renovation worksites.