A 14-year-old basketball team member in Hsinchu County was crushed to death by an electric hydraulic basketball hoop at his school. Schools across the county have now been ordered to carry out a full inspection of large sports equipment — bad news for students' parents, and an exposure of gaps in the management of school facilities.

• The student, surnamed Chen, suffered crushing injuries to the chest while folding up the electric basketball hoop in the gymnasium, and died despite being taken to hospital.
• Four classmates witnessed the incident, but no coach or teacher was present.
• Police found that the hoop had been leaking oil since June; the contractor visited the site this month but did not carry out testing because there was no power supply.
• County Magistrate Yang Wen-ke has ordered all schools to strictly prohibit students from operating dangerous equipment on their own without instruction and supervision.
• The family has enlisted two county councillors to assist and is preparing to file for state compensation.

Outlook: Prosecutors and police are continuing to investigate whether there was negligence in equipment maintenance, while the county government conducts a parallel internal investigation. All schools will be required to establish safety records for their equipment and carry out regular inspections.