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Authorities temporarily suspend suspicious international parcels on safety concerns

July 21, 2023

The Postal Service temporarily suspended suspicious international packages, as concerns were growing over some random parcels that might contain an unspecified hazardous material.

The move came after a flurry of reports came in nationwide of receiving random parcels from Taiwan, in recent days.

On Thursday, such a parcel caused three people who unpacked it suffered dizziness and difficulty breathing at a welfare center for the disabled in the southeastern port city of Ulsan.

The three people have been admitted to hospital and are now said to be in stable condition.

While medical tests did not immediately point out what caused the symptoms, police did not rule out a toxic chemical agent might have caused infections.

This photo provided by the local fire department shows a package from Taiwan delivered to a home in Incheon, 27 kilometers southwest of Seoul, on July 21, 2023. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
This photo provided by the local fire department shows a package from Taiwan delivered to a home in Incheon, 27 kilometers southwest of Seoul, on July 21, 2023. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

The parcel has been sent to the Agency for Defense Development for further analysis.

The police said the name of the recipient and the phone number written on the parcel were invalid.

Authorities also found a similar package around 6 p.m. Friday while sorting out parcels at a postal office in the same city. Fire officials were dispatched to the scene and assessing the damage.

Similar reports also came from Seoul, Yongin, a suburb of Seoul, Jeju Island, Haman in South Gyeongsang Province and Daejeon.

A person on Jeju reported to the authorities about receiving a random parcel on July 11, which was sent from Taiwan and contained two plastic bottles. The person threw them away, but later reported them to the police on Thursday after hearing about the suspicious package in Ulsan.

Firefighters check out a suspicious parcel, which arrived at a welfare center for the disabled, in the southeastern port city of Ulsan on July 20, 2023, in this photo provided by Ulsan Fire Station. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
Firefighters check out a suspicious parcel, which arrived at a welfare center for the disabled, in the southeastern port city of Ulsan on July 20, 2023, in this photo provided by Ulsan Fire Station. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

A random parcel spotted in Haman was sent from Malaysia, police said. The recipient had kept the parcel for about two months and reported it to the police, also after learning about the Ulsan parcel.

Authorities asked for vigilance if a random package arrives, and called on recipients not to open it and report it to authorities instead.

They said the color of such packages could be yellow or black, and could have “CHUNGHWA POST” written on them. The sender could be P.O. Box 100561-003777, Taipei Taiwan.

Firefighters wearing protective gear arrive at Uijeongbu Post Office in the city of the same name, 22 kilometers northeast of Seoul, on July 21, 2023. All employees evacuated the building after a suspicious package was found there.(Yonhap)
Firefighters wearing protective gear arrive at Uijeongbu Post Office in the city of the same name, 22 kilometers northeast of Seoul, on July 21, 2023. All employees evacuated the building after a suspicious package was found there.(Yonhap)