The city government held a Double Ninth Festival hiking event last week, expecting around 7,000 participants, but the crowd surged to over 20,000, leading to a bloody accident. Councilor Ko Chih-yu revealed that according to the city’s “Major Crowd Event Safety Management Guidelines,” events with more than 1,000 participants lasting over two hours should have a pre-planned safety maintenance scheme. The city assessed it unnecessary — she slammed the practice of setting SOPs and then not following them. What’s the point?
Agencies pass the buck
Ko Chih-yu pointed out at the council’s Public Security and Health Committee on October 31 that the Taipei City Government’s “Major Crowd Event Safety Management Guidelines” require traffic control, evacuation, and other safety plans for events with over 1,000 people lasting more than two hours. The city assessed the October 28 hiking event, which would take 4.5 hours, had 7,000 participants, yet no plan was submitted as required. Whose decision was that?
Ye Chun-lang, head of the Social Welfare Division at the Social Welfare Bureau, said that beforehand, the Department of Urban Development had asked the Fire Department, which responded that no plan needed to be submitted. But Fire Bureau Chief Wu Chun-hung said his staff confirmed they never received such an inquiry from the Department of Urban Development. Then a Department of Urban Development official claimed they had contacted a Fire Bureau staffer who believed the hiking event wasn’t listed under sporting competitions, concerts, or exhibitions, so no plan was required.
Ko expressed frustration and criticized that a simple safety plan should have been submitted. The city government had been cutting corners from start to finish, with agencies still passing the buck. Facing established rules, their handling was so careless — a phone call saying ‘don’t submit’ was enough, and the post-event review report didn’t even mention it. It’s outrageous.
Handling process slammed as slipshod
She emphasized that the city government does have management guidelines and safety maintenance plans — it just chose not to implement them. If SOPs aren’t followed, having more rules is pointless. This accident isn’t just the Department of Urban Development’s responsibility; all city government co-organizers share the blame.
Wu Chun-hung admitted that although hiking isn’t a sporting event, the inclusion of a lucky draw and potential for crowding meant a safety maintenance plan should have been provided. A Department of Urban Development official said the event was indeed poorly managed, and the post-event review did mention the safety plan — improvements will definitely be made.