Taiwan's widespread power outage leaves 27,000 people trapped in elevators

From 6pm to 9pm on August 15, many places in Taiwan, including the iconic Taiwan 101 building, suffered a power outage, affecting 6.68 million people. According to the Straits Times, Taiwan's Minister of Economic Affairs Lee Chih-kung has resigned.

Busy streets in Taiwan were dark due to a power outage on the evening of August 15 - Photo: Twitter

Lee Chih-kung has offered his resignation to Taiwan's Chief Executive Lin Chuan and it has been accepted.

A "human error" disrupted fuel supplies to Taiwan's main power plant, the largest natural gas-fired power plant in the country, the news agency reported on August 15.

The incident left 6.68 million Taiwanese without power. From 6pm to 9pm on August 15, many places in Taiwan, including the iconic Taiwan 101 building, suffered power outages. Taipei and many busy shopping centers were not spared.

In New Taipei City, at least 27,000 people were trapped in elevators due to a power outage.

Taiwan has been facing a power shortage for some time now, with recent storms breaking a transformer tower, cutting power output by 4%. At the same time, a generator at Taiwan’s largest power plant was damaged, cutting output by another 1.5%.

At the same time, the temperature in Taiwan is rising, causing electricity usage here to increase significantly.

The Taiwanese government was forced to impose an energy-saving policy that included turning off air conditioners in many offices.

According to Tuoi Tre