Chin Poon Fire Reveals Serious Safety Issues|敬鵬大火釀重大傷亡 消防.移工有話說

A fire that broke out in Taoyuan's Chin Poon Industrial plant took the lives of five firefighters and two migrant workers. The national firefighters association and migrant workers went to the Ministry of the Interior to call on the government to amend laws and improve safety.


Members of the National Association for Firefighters and a migrant worker's rights group have come to the Ministry of the Interior to call on the government to amend the Fire Services Act and to mandate all employers to clearly inform the firefighters about the placement of chemicals at a fire scene.

The reason we demand the amendment is because diesel (that was found at the scene) was not the main reason for the fire. The main cause was hydrogen peroxide, because once its concentration reaches 30 percent in temperatures above 60 degrees Celsius, it will break down and release hydrogen, an element that could easily cause an explosion. Therefore, if we don't have any information on the placement of chemicals, how can our firefighters enter the scene?

The firefighters also call on the government to punish those business owners who do not show the placement of dangerous chemicals. The firefighters also said they should have the right not to enter a fire scene after risk assessment.

Before the firefighters gain access to information at a fire scene, they should have the right not to enter. We hope we can give firefighters the right to refuse orders.

In December 2017, a fire in Sican company's dormitory in Taoyuan City took the life of a Vietnamese migrant worker. Juan Wen-chung, the brother of the deceased, said he hopes the government deals with the safety issues that plague the living environment of migrant workers.

We ask the Taiwanese government to put laws in place and move dormitories away from factory plants.
The latest fire at the Chin Poon Industrial plant has revealed serious issues in safety regulations as well as in migrant workers' living conditions.