As of today (1 July), of all the estimated 522 injured (the actual number is 500 people) in the dust explosion at the Formosa Fun Coast Water Park, 1 died, and 432 remain hospitalized, of whom 250 are in intensive care. They are being treated in 53 hospitals across 11 counties and cities, including Taipei City (256 people), New Taipei City (126 people), Taoyuan City (63 people), Taichung City (22 people), Kaohsiung City (9 people), Hsinchu City (7 people), Changhua County (6 people), Keelung City (4 people), Tainan City (4 people), Chiayi County (2 people), and Chiayi City (1 person). In order to provide proper follow-up medical treatment, the medical expert advisory group of the Ministry of Health and Welfare held its first meeting today, which was chaired by Deputy Minister Lin Zou-yan. Participants, including directors of dermatology, plastic surgery and other medical associations and experts in various health care related fields, provided suggestions on follow-up medical care, professional consultation and resource sharing in relation to the case. Minister Chiang Been-huang also held the third meeting today with the ad hoc group for the Formosa Fun Coast Dust Explosion, and instructed the Emergency Operation Center (EOC) to cooperate with the newly launched medical expert advisory group in resource integration and contingencies. 

The Ministry of Health and Welfare activated its emergency response mechanism immediately following the incident (on 27 June) to check information on hospital beds through its six EOCs, making every effort to assist local health authorities in the rapid placement of patients, so that the high number of complex burn patients could be appropriately placed and receive proper medical care. The Ministry has also been arranging and monitoring the movements of all hospitalized patients, including discharges and transfers. Medical resources including burn wards and intensive care units in cities and counties are under the strict control of the Ministry of Health and Welfare through its EOCs, which have been actively assisting with meeting the needs of patients’ transfers and arrangements. According to the statistics, there are 686 ICU beds, 56 beds in burn wards, and 3965 acute care beds still available as of today. 

The ministry is grateful for the many primary care staff who took the initiative to express their willingness to provide medical manpower support. The Ministry will be adopting an ad hoc proceeding given the emergency status of the incident. Tabulations will be made by medical institutions and sent to public health bureaus for future reference, replacing the practice of registration as specified in the Medical Personnel Act. However, the duration of the practice is to be limited to two months, and the local public health bureaus will examine and verify the medical personnel certificates of all personnel. The ministry has also requested the Taiwan Medical Association to assist in the coordination of the tabulations. Any medical personnel who are willing to provide support can contact the association to register. The ministry will conduct the centralized dispatching of supporting human resources. In addition, in response to the subsequent dramatic increase in health care personnel overtime costs that might be incurred in medical institutions, the Premier of the Executive Yuan, Mao Zhi-guo, has given special instructions on providing assistance by using the public budget to subsidize payments, so as to allow medical institutions to be fully engaged in medical treatment without having to worry about funding. 

The incident has seen central and local authorities fully mobilized and their efforts concerted to check the conditions and efficiency of medical treatment daily, and the FDA has also been assisting with the supply and demand coordination of medicines and medical equipment. The National Health Insurance Administration deals ad hoc with issues related to medical expenses; the Ministry’s Department of Mental and Oral Health and the Department of Social Assistance and Social Work have also activated psychological care mechanisms for patients and their families as well as the general public. All of them have been working together to handle all follow-up procedures including surgery, rehabilitation, and psychological treatment, providing the best possible care to the public. 

The Ministry of Health and Welfare would like to thank all the people again for their assistance. We are grateful for the medical resources actively provided by medical supplies organizations. And our special thanks go to the hospital employees, who have played a key role in the rescue process and the follow-up care of the injured. We would also like to urge the public to avoid taking up health care resources unless absolutely necessary. Please also note that the Ministry always gives the public explanations for the allocation and dispatching of medical resources in a transparent and open manner, and a special web page has been set up on our official website (www.mohw.gov.tw) for any relevant enquiries. Please take care not to easily believe in or forward false information, and do not be misled into believing in folk remedies or other rumors in order to avoid causing harm to yourself.