Woman at New Taipei bus stop struck by AC unit that fell from 17th floor

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A young woman waiting at a bus stop in New Taipei City was struck by an air conditioner that fell from the 17th floor of a building on Thursday (July 20) and died from her wounds despite emergency treatment.

The incident occurred at a bus stop near Exit 2 of the Xinpu MRT station on Minsheng Road in Banqiao District shortly after 1 p.m., reported UDN. The 21-year-old victim, surnamed Huang (黃), suffered a large gash on her head and broken legs, and she was unresponsive when she was transported to the emergency room at Far Eastern Memorial Hospital.After Huang was struck, her older sister who was with her contacted police and firefighters at 1:11 p.m. Despite initially showing signs of life and receiving emergency treatment from several bystanders who were also nurses, Huang was declared dead about an hour later by doctors at the hospital.

The 30-kilogram AC unit that struck the woman was reportedly installed by a single worker on a floor that is undergoing renovation. The worker had allegedly just fastened the unit to the window frame, but it was not securely installed and fell to the street soon after it was let go of, reported TVBS.Officers are investigating the scene and circumstances to determine how the incident occurred. The worker who installed the AC unit, a 31-year-old man surnamed Li (李), has been taken to the local police station for questioning and has reportedly accepted responsibility for Huang's death.