Xingao Water Park

An amusement park in Taiping that opened in February 1975, financed by Tsai Qirui (蔡奇瑞), chairman of the hotel in Taichung’s Xingao Building. Loosely modelled on Disneyland, it covered about a hectare with swimming pools, a small zoo, and mechanical rides. For a time it was as well-known as Datong Water Park in the north, but in April 1985 a stampede inside a maze killed one primary school student and seriously injured seven more, drawing attention to the park’s illegal structures and failed safety inspections. It closed the following year and after a long period of abandonment the site was cleared for residential development in 2000.