Taipei City Government slammed for holding kids’ track meet in downpour

2026-06-26

Heavy rainstorms hit Neihu District in Taipei City early Thursday morning, causing widespread flooding. However, a track-and-field tournament organized by the Taipei City Government Education Department went ahead as scheduled. A total of 159 students from 14 elementary schools competed in the downpour, a situation some parents found unacceptable. They worried that their kids could not only catch cold, but that this could also cause foot injuries.

Jocelyn Hung
Taipei City Councilor (DPP)
These children were forced to participate in running races and a 2,000-meter race walk in torrential rain, which took almost half an hour. They were soaked the entire way, and by the end, they had no dry clothes to change into. I ask Chiang Wan-an: As a father of three, do you have the heart to let children suffer like this? Is the Education Department asleep at the wheel? What is the point of this competition? Are you trying to cultivate sportsmanship in children, or are you just trying to make them sick? I find it utterly incomprehensible.

In an interview, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an stated that he had instructed the Department of Education to look into the matter, emphasizing that student safety must be the top priority when schools face sudden, heavy downpours during competitions. The Department of Education added that the referees had assessed the weather conditions according to track-and-field regulations and subsequently shortened the competition. Afterward, hairdryers and facilities for athletes to change clothes were provided.

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#rain #weather #downpour #schoollife #trackandfield #Chiangwanan #Taipeipolitics

東湖盃田徑賽大暴雨未停挨轟北市府:經裁判團依據判斷

2026-06-26

週四一早，台北市內湖區下大暴雨、多處積淹水，但教育局舉辦的東湖盃田徑邀請賽還是照常舉行。現場 14所國小、159名學生，在大雨中比賽，讓一些孩子家長難以接受，這樣涉水跑步，不只可能會著涼，泡著水跑步，腳也會受傷。

[[台北市議員(民) 洪婉臻]]
“讓這個孩子，在大雨滂沱當中竟然做了跑步的比賽，還有兩千公尺的競走，要走快半個小時，一路淋雨，淋到後面也沒有衣服可以替換，我就問蔣萬安，你身為三寶爸，你忍心讓孩子，這樣子受苦受難，難道教育局是在睡覺嗎，這樣的比賽，意義在哪裡，你是要培養孩子的運動家精神，還是要讓孩子生病感冒，我真的覺得匪夷所思”

蔣萬安受訪時表示，有請教育局去了解，各校舉辦賽事碰到短延時強降雨情形，一定是要以學生安全為優先考量。教育局則說，天候狀況經裁判團依據田徑規則判斷，
有縮短比賽時間，事後也提供吹風機、以及滿足選手更換衣物等需求。

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Taipei luxury apartments shrink as credit and space tightens

Luxury homes in Taipei are getting smaller. The days of buying properties over 100 ping are fading, as high-end buyers shift toward more compact units. In one major development in Zhongzheng District, 37 sales over the past three years averaged nearly NT$100 million each, but the actual living space was under 60 ping. Experts say tighter credit rules and a 30% mortgage cap are pushing wealthy buyers to reconsider and choose smaller homes.

This luxury apartment building in the heart of Taipei’s Zhongzheng District has apartments ranging from 57 to 70 ping. It has sold 37 units over the past three years, making it a favorite among wealthy buyers.

Tang Shih-ching
FTV reporter
Close to the Bo’ai Special Zone and Ministry of Economic Affairs, apartments in this safe and quiet area cost about NT$100 million. But after accounting for shared facilities and parking, the actual living space is smaller than 60 ping.

While luxury homes were traditionally large, smaller units are becoming the norm in Taipei’s high-end housing market. The top three best-selling luxury developments built within the past 10 years all have an average interior space of less than 75 ping.

The second best-selling luxury residence over 10 years old sold seven units over the past three years, with an average interior space of 75.6 ping. The shift in the market is largely driven by the Central Bank’s seventh round of selective credit controls.

Kuo Han
Real-estate research director
Because the mortgage is capped at just 30%, buyers purchasing luxury homes must provide 70% in cash. For a NT$100 million property, that means putting down NT$70 million up front, so smaller units have become a more attractive option. In addition, land in Taipei is limited. Traditional luxury apartments were mainly in Xinyi District, but now luxury developments are emerging in areas that were previously less common, such as the Dunnan area and Zhongzheng District.

Today’s wealthy buyers are less focused on purchasing large homes. Even with tighter government controls, location and scarcity remain the key factors for keeping luxury property values stable.

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#apartment #Taipei #property #realestate #luxury #luxuryhome #luxuryapartment #mortgage #price

2026-06-26

Taiwan’s Irwin mangoes fly off French shelves

Taiwan’s Irwin mangoes were sold in France for the first time this year, offered at high-end supermarkets for over NT$2,000 per kilogram. Despite the high price, the first shipment sold out within two days. Prices later surged to over NT$3,600 per kilogram, but demand continued to outstrip supply.

Bright red mangoes glisten in the sunlight, their golden yellow flesh sweet and juicy. These premium Irwin mangoes were recently boxed and shipped to France to be sold at the iconic Galeries Lafayette department store.

Voice of Weng Kai-li
Merchant
It’s an honor that Taiwan’s agricultural products have truly reached world-class standards, enabling them to be sold here.

Taiwan’s sweet Irwin mangoes have won over French customers, selling out quickly after they hit the shelves. Prices have even more than doubled. Even among mangoes from other countries, Taiwan’s produce stood out due to their bright red shine and delectable sweetness.

Voice of Weng Kai-li
Merchant
They sold really well once they hit the market, selling out in just two days. Besides their striking color and appearance, Irwin mangoes’ sweet aroma can be smelled from far away.

France’s Galeries Lafayette is renowned for carrying luxury brands. After passing strict EU quarantine requirements and overcoming major shipping challenges, Irwin mangoes have sold well in France’s premium market, boosting confidence for farmers back in Taiwan.

Chen Ming-hsien
Agriculture marketing chair
France has the highest costs because flying them out there takes 48 hours. But having another channel to market the fruit is great for farmers.

Chou Chun-mi
Pingtung County Commissioner
I’m really proud. We will continue to assist our farmers in Pingtung, marketing more of Pingtung’s great products around the world.

Taiwan’s mangoes are selling well in South Korea as well as France, proving there is no need to rely on the Chinese market. Although international shipping and cold chain management is costly, it has enhanced Irwin mangoes’ international competitiveness and put a spotlight on Taiwan’s agricultural products.

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#mango #Irwin #Taiwan #France #international #market #success #internationaltrade

2026-06-26

Nigerian child flies to Taiwan for life-changing surgery

A seven-year-old girl from Nigeria named Miracle, born with a rare condition that left her dependent on a colostomy, underwent life-changing reconstructive surgery in Taiwan. Miracle’s mother sold her property to bring her daughter across the world for treatment. Now she can eat and use the bathroom normally. Miracle celebrated her birthday for the first time in Taiwan, marking a new beginning for the family.

Dressed like a princess in a pink tiara, seven-year-old Miracle from Nigeria came to Taiwan with her mother for a life-changing surgery. She had a rare birth defect in which the opening to the anus was missing or blocked. Although she had previously undergone a colostomy, her family’s financial difficulties meant she could only use diapers and bandages to manage her condition.

Jennifer
Miracle’s mother
I was very, very happy because I was thinking, “Is this real life, or a dream?” I’m surprised because it just seems like a movie, is it real, or is it not real? But I just thank God for every day.

Jennifer sold her property to fly to Taiwan with her daughter. With the support of the Taiwan Root Medical Peace Corps and Taipei Medical University, Miracle was able to get the reconstructive surgery she needed to live a normal life. After her surgery, Miracle celebrated her birthday for the first time in Taiwan.

Jennifer
Miracle’s mother
I don’t have the money to celebrate her birthday. I was very, very happy, for the first time in her life I celebrated her birthday and the first in her life she cuts cake.

Huang Fu-huan
Taipei Medical University Hospital pediatric surgeon
The first surgery was to reconstruct her anorectal anatomy, creating a functional anal opening where there was none by pulling down the rectum and forming a normal anus for her to use. The second surgery was performed after confirming that anal dilation and bowel function were both ok, then we closed her temporary colostomy.

After flying across the world, Miracle has marked a new beginning to her life. Her dream is to become a doctor so she can help others, just like these doctors have helped her.

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#miracle #Nigeria #Taiwan #surgery #medical #medicine #lifechanging #medicalbills #birthday

2026-06-26

New York Yankees sign 18-yo pitcher Lai Chien-fan

An 18-year-old has been signed to the New York Yankees. After 16 years, Lai Chien-fan has become the third Taiwanese player to join the Yankees, after Wang Chien-ming in 2000 and Kuo Fu-lin in 2009. Lai has just graduated from Taoyuan’s Daxi Senior High School. The signing ceremony on Friday was attended by his Yankees Taiwanese predecessors. Let’s hear from all of them.

Lai Chien-fan
New York Yankees pitching prospect
I am the New York Yankees’ Lai Chien-fan. I had chosen to attend high school in Taoyuan, which is very far away from home, but my family had supported my decision. Now, I’m going even farther. I will work harder and hopefully reach the Majors. I hope to achieve what Wang Chien-ming has. What he had achieved really wasn’t an easy feat.

Matt Slater
Yankees global player acquisition supervisor
Chien-fan displays tremendous abilities that we believe can make him a Major League player. It has been 16 years since the New York Yankees signed a player in Taiwan… 12 years since we signed a player in Asia.

Wang Chien-ming
CTBC Brothers pitching coach
Of course we hope he could stay in Taiwan. But on second thoughts, even if he did, it’s not completely certain that we will get him on our team. So it’s great that he’ll be challenging himself in the US. I hope he’ll continue on his endeavors over there.

Kuo Fu-lin
TSG Hawks player
There will be excellent players from around the world. Don’t be intimidated when you see how tall and buff they are. You’ll also become even better.

Born in Taitung to an Amis family, Lai was selected to join the country’s U18 team in Grade 11. He had thrown a fastball with a speed as high as 154km/h. According to reports, his contract is worth US$850,000, around NT$25 million. He is expected to arrive in the US before the end of the year to hopefully join the Yankees’ off-season training.

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#MLB #baseball #yankees #athlete #amazingteens

2026-06-26

Offices and schools shut down across Taiwan amid heavy rain

2026-06-26

Taiwanese researchers play major role in Japanese space mission

Taiwanese developed software has successfully been launched into space. A Japan-led mission in collaboration with researchers from Taiwan’s National Chung Hsing University and National Tsing Hua University launched a CubeSat space telescope into space. This marked a significant milestone for the participation of Taiwanese academia in international space missions. Let’s find out more.

Countdown, lift off! A CubeSat space telescope that has input from research teams at National Chung Hsing University and National Tsing Hua University successfully launches into space aboard a Japanese Jaxa H3 rocket.

Goto Tomotsugu
National Tsing Hua University
Out CubeSat is a more sensitive one to make this measurement, and we’re trying to reveal where this faint light is coming from.

This mission, led by the Kyushu Institute of Technology in Japan in collaboration with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency or Jaxa, along with 13 industry, academic and research institutions from Taiwan and Japan, marks a significant milestone for Taiwan’s academic community when it comes to participating in international space science missions.

Lin Chien-hung
Ministry of Education
The Ministry of Education’s program to jointly launch three satellite missions with Japan is something Taiwan has never done before. I believe the successful launch of this project serves as a trailblazer for us. We hope the success of National Chung Hsing University and National Tsing Hua University will pave the way for National Central University’s satellite project next year and National Cheng Kung University’s the year after to be launched successfully.

The data reception system as well as the subsequent data processing and calibration systems used in the mission were all independently developed by the Taiwanese team. Following the successful launch, the research team will verify the satellite’s functionality and conduct preliminary observations. Over the next year, they plan to continuously collect cosmic background radiation data, moving a step closer to unraveling the mystery behind the origin of the universe’s “excess light.”

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#Jaxa #NCHU #NTHU #VERTECS #Cubesat #spaceresearch #spacetelescope

2026-06-26

Hsinchu mayors slammed for late decision to suspend work and classes

Residents in Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County are furious at their mayors for only announcing the suspension of work and classes around noon, when the heavy downpours had already caused severe flooding in many parts of the region. For example, a scooter driver slipped and got washed down the road, while a residential building got flooded when water poured through a window.

A scary moment unfolded in front of Guangfu Junior High in Hsinchu, as a scooter rider was knocked down and swept away—along with his vehicle—by the raging muddy water.

It’s heavily flooded on Guangfu Road, and the water is flowing quickly. Crossing the street is like wading through a stream for these kids. Some even needed a helping hand from the traffic police.

At this residential building, floodwater from the courtyard poured in as soon as a window was opened, likely the result of a clogged drain.

As the rain poured down, tiny cascades broke through a red brick wall and sputtered outward. Nearby, an underground walkway had completely flooded, as had other parts of town.

Local resident
Hsinchu
The streets were shoddily patched together. If you add what’s over there, it was about this high before. The road surface should be elevated. The more work they do, the worse it gets.

- 8:30.
- It started flooding at 8:30?
- Of course I’m worried. I can’t even bother to sweep the water. I’ll do it when it subsides a bit.

Local residents are baffled as to why their mayors did not call off work and classes with such heavy rainfall. On Friday morning, Zhubei City Mayor Cheng Chao-fang announced that his town would suspend work and classes after midday. He also wrote that he only learnt at 8:50 a.m. from county Commissioner Yang Wen-ke’s Facebook page that the county government had authorized individual townships to call off work and classes at their own discretion.

Netizens flooded Yang Wen-ke’s post to slam him, accusing him of shirking his responsibilities. One user commented, "The county government failed to make a decision and didn’t even notify grassroots staff. Does the commissioner think he can just pass the buck with a single Facebook post?" After all, residents were already furious after risking the floodwaters to get to work first thing in the morning.

Local borough wardens have been busy all morning inspecting damages.

Hung Yen-ching
Beilun Borough warden, Zhubei
Really heavy. The rainfall was really, really heavy. Has this ever happened? Yes, around eight years ago. Good thing that we’d just cleared the sewages. But the rain was simply too heavy. There’s no way to drain the water that quickly.

Before the day began, the more remote townships of Wufeng and Jianshi had already suspended work and classes for the day. Later, Zhubei, Guanxi, Xinpu, Hukou, Qionglin and others followed. At 11 a.m., Hsinchu City Mayor Ann Kao made her announcement on Facebook, starting suspensions at 12 p.m. Local residents would rather have the announcement made earlier.

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#rain #weather #heavyrain #downpour #flood

2026-06-26

Five cutting-edge inventions win ITRI Elite Awards

The Industrial Technology Research Institute, or ITRI, unveiled the winners of its prestigious Elite Awards on Thursday, with three top awards offered to outstanding research projects and two for inventions that contributed to industrialization. The projects covered fields such as AI, next generation communications and net-zero sustainability. One AI technology that won an award has been implemented in over 2,000 companies, helping to improve operational efficiency and reduce costs. Let’s find out more.

Robotic arms swing back and forth with precision, and various data appears in real time on a screen. The seemingly busy production line is actually being analyzed by AI. These innovative technologies that are transforming the face of industry all come from ITRI.

Lee Tzong-ming
ITRI Senior Vice President
At ITRI, our primary focus is on strategizing for the future, driving innovation in domestic industries and serving as a trusted industrial partner. We also hope that this Elite Award ceremony and the recognition it brings will provide great encouragement to our colleagues.

The ITRI Elite Awards, often referred to as the "ITRI Oscars," have announced their winners. This year’s five gold award-winning technologies focus on AI, next-generation communications, and net-zero sustainability. Among them, the AI-enabled large-scale demonstration project, which won the Industrialization Contribution Gold Award, has been implemented in more than 2,000 companies. Through AI-based segmentation and labeling technology, it has helped the food and beverage industry increase the average order value and lowered the barriers to AI adoption for SMEs.

Lee Tzong-ming
ITRI Senior Vice President
Our Elite Awards this year cover areas that are closely related to our future strategies. We are also cooperating with government policies, leveraging the capabilities of ITRI to serve and drive different industries, helping them save on labor costs, increase efficiency and promote innovation.

Also winning a gold award was ultra-high frequency technology, which targets the needs of 6G and satellite communications. It not only improves chip efficiency but also pioneers the integration of chips, antennas, and heat dissipation modules. In the field of net-zero sustainability, the domestically produced zero-rare-earth EC fan motor saves 40% more electricity than traditional motors, further upgrading energy conservation for the industry.

Hsu Jen-yuan
ITRI Information and Communications Labs
Taiwan has never had its own chips or solutions for key components of satellite communications. Our technology aims to fill this gap in key satellite communication components and solutions.

From AI implementation on factory production lines to proprietary satellite communication technology and net-zero energy-saving solutions, ITRI responds to industry needs through innovative R&D and continues to lay the groundwork for Taiwan’s next wave of technological competitiveness.

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#ITRI #technology #innovation #tech #AI

2026-06-26

Taipei City Government slammed for holding kids’ track meet in downpour