‘Stage lights and powder’ led to fireball
Print Edition
A DEADLY fireball that ripped through a crowd of young people at a Taiwan water park in June was caused when colored powder was ignited by stage lights, an investigation reportedly showed yesterday.
Cornstarch powder had been sprayed over the crowd of hundreds of partygoers at the Formosa Fun Coast water park.
It exploded when it came into contact with the lights, the surface temperature of which reached more than 400 degrees Celsius, the Liberty Times reported, citing a fire department investigation.
Eleven people were killed and hundreds were hospitalized, some with third-degree burns covering more than 90 percent of their bodies.
The report has been submitted to prosecutors.
“We will use this report as a reference,” Shihlin district prosecutors’ office spokeswoman Su Pei-yu said. “We can’t reveal details at the moment as the investigation is still under way.”
The event, which drew 1,000 people — mostly aged between 18 to 25 — turned into a nightmare when the inferno ripped through the crowd.
Two months on, 42 of the victims are still in critical condition, according to Taiwan’s health authorities. The report by the fire department ruled out earlier speculation that the blaze was caused by a cigarette.
Three suspects are on bail as prosecutors investigate them on offences against public safety and negligence causing deaths.
Six more are being investigated, prosecutors said, including the chairman and president of the water park.
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