Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu has apologized for the gas explosions in the city that claimed the lives of 30 people.
On July 31 a series of powerful explosions rocked Kaohsiung. In addition to killing thirty people, the blasts also injured more than 300. A petrochemical leak in underground pipelines has been named as the cause of the explosions.
After the incident, the Kaohsiung City Government said it did not have any records about the pipelines, which belonged to the LCY Chemical Corp. However, a media report said that records kept by the Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit system had already noted the pipelines in 2012. The report said either that the city government was failing at its job or lying.
In an interview after a city government meeting on Thursday, Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu made an apology and denied that the city government lied.
"It is true that the Public Works Bureau staff at the explosions sites did not have any records about LCY’s pipelines; they repeatedly told me so. We did not lie, but we did have serious problems in horizontal communication," said Chen.
"Here on behalf of the city government team I would like to apologize to everybody. I think the Kaohsiung City Government must take responsibility for this. We’re very sorry," she said.
The explosions have highlighted the issue of underground pipeline safety. Speaking to the media on Thursday, Vice President Wu Den-yih said although it is difficult to balance safety and industrial development, he believes that there must be a solution. He stressed that safety will always be the top priority.