Drill simulating indiscriminate attack set for 2 Taipei MRT stations Thursday

Taipei, Feb. 4 (CNA) A drill simulating an indiscriminate attack will be held Thursday at MRT Daqiaotou Station in Taipei and Sanchong Elementary School Station in New Taipei, with emergency alerts to be sent to mobile phones near one of the sites, the Taipei City government said Wednesday.

The exercise will take place from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., during which mobile phones within a 500-meter radius of Daqiaotou Station will receive emergency warning messages as part of the simulation, the city government said in a press release.

Conducted jointly by the Taipei and New Taipei city governments, the drill aims to familiarize the public with emergency response procedures and ensure rapid, orderly evacuations in the event of a major incident, according to the release.

Residents are advised not to panic upon receiving the alert, which will be clearly marked as a "drill" in both Chinese and English, the city government said.

The message will read: "[Drill] [Evacuation] A major incident has occurred at MRT Daqiaotou Station. For your personal safety, please remain calm, find cover nearby, and avoid the area. Taipei City Government 1999."

This will be the third such drill, following exercises at MRT Taipei City Hall Station in late December and Taipei Main Station in January after the indiscriminate knife attacks at Taipei Main Station and near Zhongshan Station on Dec. 19, in which four people died, including the perpetrator, with 11 people injured.