Taipei Fine Arts Museum

The content of the Taipei City Fire Prevention Autonomous Regulation (Draft) currently reviewed by the Taipei City Council is mainly fire prevention of electricity, residences, old buildings, the safety of evacuations, etc. and prohibit against releasing flying lanterns is not the main focus. However, due to some people have different opinions on the part of the prohibition of releasing flying lanterns, Taipei City Fire Department addressed again on January 8, 2010 that Taipei City always requires public safety with strictest criteria in order to secure lives and property safety of citizens, and also considers the expectation of citizens in Taipei City as well. They hope this regulation can complete the legislative process and reduce the possibility of fires in Taipei City.
As for related issues regarding the prohibition of releasing flying lanterns, Taipei City Fire Department reclaims that Taipei City is not suitable to release flying lanterns because Taipei City is not only a basin, but also a city with mostly business and residential areas. Moreover, there are a lot of old communities and buildings in the area, the result can be really serious once a fire is triggered. Besides, flying lanterns is from the principle of hot air balloons. It can burn for 7 minutes and the flying height is about 600~800 meters. The flying radius is about 5kms (information from Tourism and Travel Bureau, Taipei County). However, there are intensive MRT bridges, overpasses and expressways, increasing chartered flights to Taipei Songshan Airport and also quite a lot of governmental organizations in Taipei City. Therefore, the requirement of public safety has always been with the strictest standards. If people release flying lanterns and cause fire or any accident, it will not only cause the injury of innocent people, but will also make releaser take the responsibility of criminal and civil liability. In order to secure the safety of most people’s lives and property, it is better to prohibit against releasing flying lanterns.
Taipei City Fire Department addressed that the promoting “home fire alarm” is a cheap and efficient simple device. According to the statistics from USA, the fire rate of the houses installed with fire alarms has reduced by 95%. Moreover, Tokyo, Japan has revised Article 55 of Fire Prevention Ordinance in 2004 and requests that residential houses must install home fire alarms after analysis and researches. Currently Tokyo, Japan has been implementing this regulation. Therefore, Taipei City Fire Prevention Autonomous Regulation (Daft) has regulated that the residential buildings or the specific buildings and locations announced by Taipei City Fire Department that do not have automatic fire alarm equipments should install fire alarms. The buildings or locations which should install fire alarms as mentioned have to comply with the installation regulations made by National Fire Agency, Ministry of the Interior and people in charge of the management shall proceed with the inspection by themselves.

In the draft, it also prohibits against performing with fire in restaurants. Taipei City Fire Department addressed that, when we review casualty accidents caused by performance with fires, for example, 10 people died in a night club in Moscow on 2007/3/25; on 2005/8/10, Japan, AICHI EXPO emergently evacuated 300 tourists although no tourist was injured; moreover, on 2003/2/21, in a night club in Warwick, Rhode Island, USA, nearly one hundred people were killed and more than 200 people were injured. Those cases were caused all because of careless fire performance and even when it was without permit to gather a big group of people in a closed environment. In the recent years it has been popular to have torches or fire dish serving shows at wedding or celebration parties held in hotels or restaurants. Although it can help with the atmosphere, but it may cause fire with any accident and cause serious causalities and property losses. Therefore, Taipei City Government has to enforce the limit on the use of fire shows.
Due to electricity fire happens frequently in Taipei City, Taipei City Fire Department pointed out that electricity fire can be divided into home appliances, accessory wires, circuit wires, electricity equipments and electricity products, etc. In the draft, it is regulated that when the buildings in Taipei City are applying for the change of use or interior decoration, the applicant or the owner should assign electricity installation staff or electrician to take, change and improve the safety of electricity related equipments such as wires, adaptors, and switches.
Taipei City Fire Department addressed that, the legislative purpose of “Taipei City Fire Prevention Autonomous Regulation (Daft)” is to plan for the improvement of the public safety in Taipei City at all aspects. Therefore, after it reviewed fire prevention autonomous regulations from other countries and analyzed fire issues of Taipei City in recent 10 years, Taipei City Fire Department investigated the fire prevention characteristics of citizen’s fire and electricity using habits by outsourcing for the research at all aspects, and invited industrial, governmental, and academic experts several times to inquire their opinions based on which Taipei City Fire Prevention Autonomous Regulation (Daft) will be made. Moreover, in order to make the fire prevention autonomous regulation closer to public opinions, a public conference was held on 2008/3/12 inviting industrial, governmental and academic experts, and it was also published on Taipei City Government Report on 2008/5/1. The draft has been passed by Taipei City Government on 2009/3/24 and sent to Taipei City Council for review on 2009/4/2.