FIRE!!!

It's the Chinese New Year, so encounters with the fire department is not necessary unusual given all the fireworks that are exploded each night. As a family, we have had two encounters with the fire department during this Chinese New Year holiday. The first one took place three nights ago while we were shooting fireworks with a group of friends on the bank of Ji-loong River in Da-ji. The police and the fire department came after about an hour of fireworks and asked us to stop. We were generating a lot of smoke, fire and noise and brought complaints from the residences in the area. One funny incidence took place when the police asked one of us for an identification card. As none of the adults were willingly producing their ID cards, Nick volunteered with his American Club card and showed it to the Officer. The Officer took one look at the card and let us off with just a warning. While fireworks in Taipei is no longer legal, the police department usually turns a blind eye during the Chinese New Year holiday period.

Our second encounter with the fire department was more serious and it took place last night (or more precisely) -- at around 2:30am. When we were awoken by the fire alarm, it took us a minute or two for it to register. Our first instinct was to think that the fire alarm has malfunctioned -- again. Felicia took charge and went out into the hallway and smelled burning plastics and alerted all of us to move. By this time, the boys were up from all the ruckus. At the same time, our neighbour called from downstairs to inform us that the fire was on the third floor and we should evacuate immediately. The boys got dressed immediately and walked down while Felicia, as the head of the building management committee, went down and warned each units as we walked down. Knowing that it was a real fire, I grabbed the boys' red packet money as well as some cash and walked down as well.

The walk down was pretty easy. It really didn't get smoky until around the fourth floor and the smoke cleared as one approached the second floor. The fire department has already arrived as I reached the lobby. I overheard from one of the fireman that the fire was out. Since it was very smoky at the time, I went up and helped open up windows in the hallway to clear the air. We waited downstairs for about 10-15 minutes before the fire department gave us the okay to return to our apartment. We were lucky that the weather was warm and dry, so the wait outside was not unpleasant. Felicia remained downstairs with the fire department to take photos of the burn site, as well as provided some basic information to the authority. The old grandma on the third floor looked a little dazed and was sent to the hospital nearby for observation. The Filipina maid, who was covered with smoke and ashes was probably the heroin of the incident as she had probably put out the fire before it spread. The fire was apparently started by a faulty "heating doggy pad" for the apartment's dog. The smoke alarm was triggered by the smoke detector within their apartment.

The smoke was mostly gone by the time we returned to our apartment, shortly after 3am. Give the adrenaline rush, it took all of us a while to fall asleep again. Thank goodness that no one was hurt and the damages were controlled in one apartment. One fireman commented as he was walking out that he was scared and he thought we were lucky to have the fire put out so quickly as it could've turned into a really bad fire.