UPDATED Taiwan water park burns victims in critical conditions climbs

[Truth_hurts]

Number of burns victims in critical condition climbs

 

’MIRACULOUS’:One patient, who suffered burns to more than 90 percent of his body, began to breathe on his own on Tuesday after having been on a ventilator for three days

 

Staff writer, with CNA

 

Burn victim Harry Chen, now on his fifth day in an intensive care unit, tells his loved ones that he will be brave in a video posted on Facebook on Thursday.

Screen grab from Chen’s Facebook

 

Two hundred-and-eleven of the nearly 500 people injured in the dust explosion and ensuing fire at New Taipei City’s Formosa Fun Coast (八仙海岸) water park on Saturday night last week were in critical condition as of yesterday, 27 more than the day before, according to figures released by the Ministry of Health and Welfare.

 

Out of a total of 495 people sent to hospitals after the incident, 449 remain hospitalized, official statistics showed. Two of the injured people died earlier this week.

Among the survivors, many of whom sustained burns to more than 50 percent of their bodies, staying alive and recovering will be a long and arduous process, doctors have said.

 

Lu Yi-ming (å‘‚æ„銘), a sophomore at Vanung University in Taoyuan who suffered burns to more than 90 percent of his body, began to breathe on his own late on Tuesday after having been on a ventilator for three days.

 

The news of Lu making a recovery, described by his doctors as “miraculous,†and a newly recorded message of hope by a 20-year-old college student who suffered burns to 55 percent of his body have brought some encouragement to those suffering the harrowing ordeal.

 

In the message recorded with the help of his girlfriend, Harry Chen (陳å‹ç¶¸) told his friends and family “not to worry.â€

 

Chen, who is now in his fifth day recovering in an intensive care unit (ICU) at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, said that cleaning his wounds and putting on new dressings “is very painful,†but realized he had little choice.

 

In a video uploaded to Facebook, the National Taiwan Sport University sophomore said he has made it his goal to recover quickly so he can be the second of the fiery explosions’ victims being treated at the hospital in New Taipei City to get back on his feet.

 

Meanwhile, hospitals treating burn patients said they are challenged by staffing shortages, despite mobilizing all related departments since patients were rushed to emergency rooms.

 

Talking to the press about the situation over the past few days, a spokesman for Taipei Veterans General Hospital said that all 456 nurses at the hospital’s 14 intensive care units have been working in shifts around the clock, because tending to the burns patients has demanded more than double the ward’s usual staff.

 

Dressing the wounds of a severe burn patient requires from eight to 10 medical personnel to work for an average 1.5 hours, he said.

 

In addition to the staff of the plastic and reconstructive surgery department, doctors and nurses of the surgical department and otolaryngology and oral surgery have joined forces to treat burns patients.

 

The Ministry of Health and Welfare said that after the incident, a total of 18 doctors and 165 nurses in private practice have contacted the ministry to volunteer their help.

 

The ministry has asked all public and private hospitals to request those who have retired or left the profession to return to their old posts to alleviate the personnel shortage.

 

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2015/07/04/2003622216

[abra]

What happened? This sounds like a scene from hell 

I hope the victims manage to make full recoveries

[Niah]

Someone made me watched the video of the accident and damn... it was so horrifying...

I hope the people responsible for this go to prison for the rest of their life.

[GirlGroupTrash]

What happened? This sounds like a scene from hell 

I hope the victims manage to make full recoveries

A water park in Taiwan was having one of those color festival things where they through powdered color in the air, but because it was so hot out, the powder caught on fire and burned a bunch of people pretty badly.

[Truth_hurts]

What happened? This sounds like a scene from hell 

I hope the victims manage to make full recoveries

Water Park Inferno: Details of pre-blaze conditions emerge

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2015/06/30/2003621906

[sane]

Whoever was in charge of the event needs to be tried criminally. There is no excuse for the complete lack of safety measures.

 

 

Best of luck to the burn victims in their recovery 

[ImNumber9_9999]

Well, i hope those people recover soon

[mgl]

I hope everyone recovers the best they can. Way too many are probably going to get scars for life....

 

What happened? This sounds like a scene from hell 

I hope the victims manage to make full recoveries

 

It pretty much was....

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7TSqFNmMmw

[Truth_hurts]

I hope those victims recovers soon.

[Truth_hurts]

Taiwan water park blast claims third victim

 

A 20-year-old male has succumbed to his injuries after suffering 50 per cent burns from a fireball that injured nearly 500 people at a Taiwan "colour party".

 

TAIPEI: A third victim died Monday (Jul 6) after being engulfed by a fireball that injured nearly 500 people at a Taiwan "colour party" on Jun 27.

 

Chen Tien Shun, 20, suffered 50 per cent burns in the disaster, which saw crowds of young revellers overwhelmed by flames after being sprayed with clouds of multi-coloured corn starch at the event.

 

Chen's burns were mostly on his arms and legs. He was being treated at the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Linkou of Xinbei City, but his condition took a turn for the worse on Monday morning.

 

Local media reported that Mr Chen went to the park along with five other childhood friends, and they are all being treated at intensive care units since the explosion. Currently, there are still nearly 300 people warded at intensive care units.

 

Around 1,000 spectators had attended the Color Play Asia event at the Formosa Fun Coast water park, just outside the capital Taipei. More than 200 suffered serious injuries and were being treated across 43 hospitals.

 

On Thursday, student Liu Chih-wei, 19, succumbed to his injuries after suffering 95 per cent burns. Another victim, 20-year-old Lee Pei-yun, who had suffered 90 per cent burns, died on Jun 29 - the first fatality.

 

Amateur footage showed partygoers dancing by a stage when the clouds of powder exploded into flames which swept through the crowd.

 

Some tried to douse the blaze with fire extinguishers and to put out burning victims who were running screaming for their lives. Three suspects have been released on bail as prosecutors investigate them on charges of offences against public safety and negligence causing severe injuries.

 

- CNA/rw

 

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/taiwan-water-park-blast/1963558.html

[Truth_hurts]

Water park death toll could reach 30

 

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The number of fatal victims of the June 27 Formosa Fun Coast water park could rise from the present three to 30, according to statistics from the Ministry of Health and Welfare reported Tuesday.

Three people died in the aftermath of the fire which injured almost 500 mostly young people, but doctors have still warned that many of the patients have entered a critical period, with more infections and even deaths a strong possibility.

 

The superintendent of Mackay Memorial Hospital, Yang Yuh-cheng, caused some consternation Tuesday when he said that out of each 50 victims, ten might not survive.

 

Based on data about burn victims aged between 15 and 30 over the past ten years, the death rate stood at 10.6 percent within six months after the disaster, which could translate into about 30 deaths for the Formosa Fun Coast blaze.

 

The ministry warned that other factors could also be at play, including the improvement of medical technology since the data came out and the efforts of medical and nursing staff.

 

The risk period for the burn victims was likely to last six months, Mackay’s Yang said, advising relatives to be ready for the worst.

 

The medical group has been at the forefront of treating the victims, partly due to the location of one of its hospitals in New Taipei City’s Tamshui District, not far from the site of the disaster in Bali District.

 

New data released by the ministry Tuesday saw the total number of victims still in critical condition drop to 229 from 235 Tuesday, but 22 of the victims had burns over 80 percent or more of their body.

 

A total of 288 people were staying at intensive care departments and three were being treated by extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a technique which uses a pump to circulate blood through an artificial lung back into the bloodstream.

 

Of the 426 people still receiving medical treatment, 22 had burns over 80 percent or more of their body, and 248 had burns over at least 40 percent of their body, according to the ministry data.

 

 

http://www.taiwannews.com.tw/etn/news_content.php?id=2766734

[Truth_hurts]

Color Play Asia fire victim returns home

 

PAID LEAVE:New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu said he would tap corporate donations to the disaster victims to cover the cost of subsidizing leave pay for their family members

 

A 35-year-old man critically injured in the Color Play Asia fire at Formosa Fun Coast (八仙海岸) on June 27 was discharged yesterday from New Taipei City’s Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, becoming the first victim with burns to more than 20 percent of their body to be sent home.

 

Chen Po-chang (陳æŸç’‹), who suffered burns to 20.8 percent of his body, was wheeled out of the hospital in a wheelchair yesterday afternoon with burns clearly visible on his arms and legs.

 

Chen told reporters he was standing right in front of the main stage at the event at the Bali District (八里) water park when the explosion occurred, and that he ran so fast that he lost both his shoes.

 

He thanked his family and the hospital for their support, and encouraged the other victims of the fire to have faith in themselves.

 

Far Eastern Memorial Hospital superintendent Chu Shu-hsun (朱樹勳) said Chen’s release could prove inspirational to the other 18 fire victims the hospital is treating, including one who sustained burns over more than 17 percent of their body.

As of 10am yesterday, 426 fire victims remained hospitalized at 49 medical institutions nationwide, including 288 in intensive care units and 229 who are in critical condition, the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s statistics show.

Of those injured in the fire, 248 suffered burns over more than 40 percent of their bodies, with 22 sustaining burns covering at least 80 percent.

 

Meanwhile, amid mounting criticism over the fairness of the Executive Yuan giving civil servants with immediate relatives who were injured in the fire 20 days of paid leave, officials said private sector workers would receive financial support equivalent to 20 days’ wages.

 

In order to take care of all the families of the victims, New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) told Premier Mao Chi-kuo (毛治國) in a telephone call that he would follow the Executive Yuan’s decision, Executive Yuan spokesperson Sun Lih-chyun (孫立群) said.

 

Chu told the premier that the money would come from donations made by members of the public to the fire victims that the city government has collected, Sun said.

The Executive Yuan on Monday said that 35 civil servants whose family members were hurt in the fire were entitled to a total of 20 days paid leave in line with the recently revised Operation Regulations on the Suspension of Offices and Classes in times of Natural Disasters (天然ç½å®³åœæ­¢ä¸Šç­åŠä¸Šèª²ä½œæ¥­è¾¦æ³•).

 

The move drew criticism because it appeared to favor civil servants over those employed in the private sector.

Under the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法), employees of private enterprises are entitled to 14 days of unpaid leave a year.

 

Chu said later yesterday that the New Taipei City Government would tap funds donated by companies and corporations to cover the cost of subsidizing the leave policy since the firms said they wanted the money to be used to take care of the fire victims and their families.

 

 

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2015/07/08/2003622545

[azure]

This is so horrible. I can't think of anything worse than dying from a burn injury. RIP.