Another person dies from contaminated kuey teow in Taiwan

THE bongkrekic acid poisoning incident at a Malaysian restaurant in Taiwan has claimed another life, bringing the total deaths to three, reported Sin Chew Daily.

The victim, a 40-year-old engineer, died of organ failure on Saturday after he was admitted to the Taipei Medical University Hospital on March 24.

He was among the 35 diners, most of whom had consumed kuey teow dishes at Polam Kopitiam, down with the lifethreatening bongkrekic acid poisoning – a respiratory toxin produced in fermented coconut or corn contaminated by bacteria.

According to Taiwanese Deputy Health Minister Victor Wang, the Malaysian was one of four patients warded in the intensive care unit.

The other three victims, one of whom underwent a liver transplant, were in stable condition, he added.

The restaurant, which has several outlets, has been ordered to suspend operations, pending an investigation.

> The daily also reported that commuters who parked their vehicles at Kuchai Lama MRT station in Kuala Lumpur were alerted to a man taking pictures of car tyres and number plates.

An Internet user uploaded a video of the man’s odd behaviour on social media.

“He was at the car park for more than 30 minutes.

“When he walked past a car, he took a photo of the number plate and stroked the tyres before taking more images,” he said.

While some Internet users speculated that the man was planning to steal the rims, others thought that he might be carrying out a marketing survey.

One of them said he once worked as a data collector and needed to input between 100 and 500 units of data, including vehicle models, tyre sizes and number plates daily.

“My friend has also taken on a similar role.

“He visited supermarket car parks and took pictures of car tyres,” he wrote.

> Fans of Taiwanese singer Jay Chou are praying that the singer’s concert in Malaysia, scheduled on Oct 26, would not clash with any major football matches following the mayhem it caused last year, reported China Press.

In January 2023, football fans were in an uproar when organisers of the AFF Cup first leg semi-finals match between Malaysia and Thailand only offered 59,000 tickets for the game in Stadium Bukit Jalil despite its capacity of 87,411.

This was because the structure of the stage for Chou’s concert the following week had blocked some 21,000 seats.

Football fans had vented their anger on social media.