Toddler hurt in Taichung blast discharged from hospital

Taichung, Feb. 26 (CNA) A 2-year-old girl from Macau, who sustained severe head injuries in a deadly gas explosion at a Taichung mall on Feb. 13, was discharged from China Medical University Hospital (CMUH) on Wednesday and will be transported to Macau via a medical charter flight, according to the hospital.

After days of treatment, the girl's vital signs have stabilized after being initially admitted in a critical condition and a deep coma, though intracranial pressure remains within a dangerous range despite improving, according to a press statement issued by CMUH.

After coordinating with her family, the girl was discharged on Wednesday afternoon and will fly back to Macau on a medical charter flight, CMUH said.

The girl's 85-year-old great-grandmother and 24-year-old uncle, who were both injured in the gas explosion and later transferred to CMUH for treatment, were also discharged on Wednesday and are expected to return to Macau on the same flight, the hospital added.

The girl was visiting Taichung with six other family members when the explosion occurred at the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi department store just before noon on Feb. 13.

The blast caused debris to crash to the ground as the seven family members passed the department store. The grandfather was killed instantly and the grandmother pronounced dead at a hospital shortly after.

A passing motorist rushed the girl to a nearby hospital in his car, where she received emergency treatment before being transferred to China Medical University Children's Hospital for an emergency craniotomy -- a surgical procedure in which a bone flap is temporarily removed from the skull to access the brain -- due to a brain hemorrhage and swelling caused by head injuries.

As of Feb. 15, the explosion had resulted in four deaths and 36 injuries, including five in intensive care and six in general wards, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare.

The ministry has not provided updates on the condition of those injured since Feb. 15, citing the stabilization of emergency admissions and patient privacy concerns over potential hospital transfers as the reason.