At about 11:45 a.m. Taiwan time on September 20, 2026, a fire was reported in an outdoor recovered-paper storage area behind Chung Hwa Pulp’s Taitung mill on Section 4 of Zhongxing Road in Taitung City, Taiwan. Liberty Times and United Daily News separately reported the core identity of the incident: the mill, the location and a fire in the recovered-paper storage area. Some response details in both reports ultimately rely on information from the local fire service.
Liberty Times reported that responders found an outdoor recovered-paper pile burning and that the fire had not spread to surrounding factory buildings at the time of arrival. United Daily News reported that crews opened firebreaks and continued water application, cooling and re-ignition prevention. Liberty Times reported no casualties at that time; United Daily News reported no trapped or injured people at its reporting checkpoint.
The reviewed reports did not disclose the final condition of the factory buildings or production equipment, affected grades, pulp or paper inventory loss, line operating status, restart timing, or effects on Korean delivery and shipment. An outdoor recovered-paper yard fire should not be rewritten as a confirmed pulp or paper production stoppage.
Status checked at 4:26 p.m. KST / 3:26 p.m. Taiwan time on September 20, 2026. Firefighting, production and shipment status may change with later fire-service, company or supplier notices.
What Is Confirmed and What Remains Unknown
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| Check | Public Basis | Current Status | Interpretation Limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place and time | About 11:45 a.m. Taiwan time on September 20; outdoor recovered-paper storage behind the Taitung mill | Reported by local media | Do not recast it as a fire across the entire mill or production line |
| Initial fire boundary | Liberty Times said surrounding factory buildings had not been reached when responders arrived | At the report checkpoint | Final damage still requires a later official check |
| Response | Firebreaks, water application, cooling and re-ignition prevention; Liberty Times reported 19 vehicles, 36 firefighters, 40 volunteer firefighters and a request for helicopter support | Media reports citing the local fire service | Do not convert response scale into equipment damage or stoppage duration |
| Human status | Liberty Times reported no casualties; United Daily News reported no trapped or injured people | At the respective report checkpoints | Distinguish this from a final official incident report |
| Cause | United Daily News said it would be investigated after extinguishment | Unresolved | Do not publish a suspected cause as fact |
| Production and supply | The reviewed reports contain no grade, inventory, equipment, line or shipment status | Unresolved | Do not assert a shortage or stoppage period |
Liberty Times reported that, in Taiwan local time, the site’s underground firefighting-water reserve had been exhausted by about 12:41 p.m. and outside water support was required. It also reported drone coordination at 1:04 p.m. and a request for helicopter support at 1:18 p.m. These are time-bounded response details; they do not establish production-equipment damage or supply disruption.
PO-Level Grade–Actual Mill–Lot–Shipment Exception Board
Assign one review ID to each open PO, record the Taitung link as confirmed, ruled out or unresolved, and carry only linked records forward to lot release and dispatch evidence. This is an editorial recordkeeping example, not a reconstruction of Taitung-site actions or Taiwanese law.
Board 1: Connect the Grade to the Actual Producing Mill
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| Review ID / PO | Item, grade and specification | Evidence of actual mill | Taitung link | Lot and current location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unique ID and open PO for the same order | Item code, grade, basis weight and dimensions | Supplier’s written confirmation, manufacturing label, certificate or other mill identifier | confirmed / ruled out / unresolved | Lot and current state: factory building, outdoor yard, external warehouse, port or shipped |
Do not decide exposure from the supplier name alone. Keep the link unresolved without item-level evidence of the actual mill. Record the basis before closing a ruled out record, and move only confirmed records to the second board.
Board 2: Connect Lot Release to Shipment Evidence
| Review ID | Lot exposure, quarantine, testing and quality release | Alternate mill and change approval | Dispatch evidence, booking and ETA | Owner and next check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Same ID as Board 1 | Location; possible fire, heat, smoke, firefighting-water or debris exposure; quarantine and test state; released quantity | Grade, fibre furnish, basis weight, caliper, moisture, strength, surface and converting fit; certification and customer change approval | Factory release, external-warehouse release, port gate-in, transport booking and Korean ETA | Response owner and next written check time |
Separate lot states as unresolved, quarantined, under test and quality released. Do not release a replacement order merely because an alternate mill exists, and do not invent acceptance values or actual Taitung production specifications absent from public reporting. Separate shipment states as schedule unresolved, dispatch evidence obtained, booking obtained and shipped.
One 24-Hour Response Package
Ask the supplier to return the following under each review ID in one response:
- item code, grade and dimensions; the actual producing mill and its evidence; and the mill shown on the most recently received lot;
- current location of each lot, exposure, quarantine and test state, firm shippable quantity and quality-release evidence;
- for an alternate-mill proposal, specification and certification comparison, sample and customer change approval, firm quantity, MOQ and available date;
- evidence of factory release, external-warehouse release and port gate-in, plus transport booking and Korean ETA; and
- response owner, information cut-off time and next update time.
Firefighting in progress, fire extinguished, site handed back, production available, quality released and shipped are different states. Keep a supplier’s general notice separate from the item- and PO-level reply.
Conditions That Keep the Exception Open
Do not declare supply normal, production stopped or alternate complete while any of the following is missing:
- evidence of the actual producing mill and a Taitung-link decision for the company’s item;
- lot location, exposure and quarantine state, firm shippable quantity and quality-release evidence;
- alternate-mill specification, certification, first sample and customer change approval; or
- connected dispatch and port evidence, transport booking and ETA.
The public record reviewed confirms a fire in an outdoor recovered-paper storage area behind the Taitung mill and the response reported at the time. Production lines, inventory, restart and Korean delivery remain publicly unresolved. The operating task is not to predict a shortage, but to connect grade–actual mill–lot release–dispatch and shipment evidence under the same review ID.
About the Author
PackingMaster: Editor of PaperPackLog. Covers market trends, product insights, and technology in the paper packaging industry.