Biggest blast in Taipei opens 2010

The fireworks show at Taipei 101 this year lasted 188 seconds and used the motto “Taiwan Up.” The landmark building joined the people of Taiwan in welcoming a brand new year.

The record-breaking party comprised the most dazzling colors and the biggest number of 22,000 fireworks that were set off from diverse angles of 30, 45, 90 and 180 degrees from the skyscraper.

The 3-inch barrel fireworks had a further range and reached larger extents than previous events. The fireworks show was divided into 25 parts and highlighted seven colors. The spectacular show cost NT$30 million.

Hotel rooms in the city were fully booked as the show drew revelers from around Asia.

Taiwanese top model Lin Chi-ling (林志玲) showed up at the concert in front of Taipei City Hall and danced with hosts Hu Gua (胡瓜) and Lan Hsin-mei (藍心湄).

Lin's first singing performance in public surprised the fans.

Also in attendance were Lin-You-chia (林侑嘉), Cloud Lu (盧廣仲), S.H.E., rock band May Day, and finale singer Wang Lee-hom (王力宏).

President Ma Ying-jeou also joined the countdown party with Taipei City Mayor Hau Lung-bin, Wei Ying-chiao and Harace Lin (林鴻明), president of Taipei 101.

Wei Ying-chiao (魏應交), chairman of Ting Hsin, the largest private shareholder of Taipei 101, as well as one of the major Taiwanese foodstuff firms, sponsored the big party yesterday and said it would bring Taiwan to the line-up of the major celebratory events worldwide.

The corporation posted an advertisement, which bore “Taiwan Up,” on major local newspapers yesterday to wish a smooth event on Dec. 31.

With the Wenshan-Neihu Line joining the service this year, the Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation is expecting to see record-high numbers of passengers.

Taipei MRT expects to carry over 2 million passengers on New Year's Eve in the wake of the more than 1.9 million passengers that flooded into MRT stations last year.

The transit corporation recruited more than 500 employees yesterday to escort passengers in stations on all lines. To deal with the heavy flow of telephone services on New Year's Eve, three major telecoms in the country dispatched 70 mobile operation cars and 300 employees to work through midnight.

Chunghwa Telecom deployed 38 operation cars, added another 70 operation bases throughout the island. The effort enhanced 30 percent of services compared with last year.

Taiwan Mobile was ready for the busy hours with 14 operation cars and 60 people working at night shifts to monitor the smooth operation. The company endeavored to prevent disconnections, which occurred last year in northern Taiwan, due to vandalism.

Far EastOne Telecom sent 14 mobile operation bases and 60 employees to make sure that phone calls and text messages were all delivered smoothly.

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