|
|
Taiwan took a separate course after the 1949 civil war that brought the Communist Party to power in China, becoming a refuge for the fleeing Nationalist troops and their families. Despite growing commercial ties across the Taiwan Strait -- more than 1 million people from Taiwan now live and work on the mainland and Taiwanese investment runs into billions of dollars -- China's leadership has vowed to make whatever sacrifice is necessary. On the Taipei stock market Thursday, the benchmark Taiex index is down about 1.2 percent after Chen's speech. Chen has showed no signs of being willing to accept unification with China. He led the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party to power in 2000, ousting the Nationalist Party, which ruled the island for five decades and opposes Taiwan independence. Most polls say the majority of Taiwanese favor avoiding immediate unification while holding off on drastic moves toward a permanent split that might provoke China. But Beijing suspects Chen might use a new constitution to enshrine claims that Taiwan has become an independent nation. Many China watchers disagree about whether China would act on long-standing threats to attack Taiwan, the Associated Press reports. But most agree that if that happened, the United States would likely get dragged in. Taiwan Election Deadlock - Latest News Update: 2 May 2004 Looks like the President will be sworn in on May 20th, while the election re-count will take place from Monday 10th May. Results are unlikely to be known before the 20th May, leading to further potential trouble at the ceremony. The two sides have just about agreed to the terms of re-count, although there are rumours that the KMT cannot afford the potential large bill it will face for initiating the legal action. There is also the potential for further violence around May 20. The last demonstration mounted by the KMT was on April 10, which turned violent, with press staff, journalists, police, KMT members being hurt. Agitators hurled petrol bombs, steel scaffold poles and other objects at the police who were ordered to disperse the crowd after the deadline time agreed for the demonstration. Watch this space for latest news.
Update: 2 April 2004 Following a week-long camp out demonstration in front of the Presidential Palace in Taipei which culminated in a massive rally by the KMT on Saturday 25 March, the situation has calmed down. The Courts have ordered both parties to settle the conditions of an election recount within 5 days. It is becoming clear that the KMT are clutching at any political straws to obtain power and the violence seen in Taipei on 24 March at the Election Commission reflects what may happen when mobs get stirred up. Opinion polls in Taipei indicated that the general public were against the lengthy demonstration. The KMT also appear to have played into China's hands with threats of intervention if the troubles continued. A point that appears to have been missed by many is that the DPP actually increased their electoral vote from around 38% in 2000 to 50% this time. However, the current 50/50 split indicates a general ethnic split with the South voting DPP and the North voting KMT, although this also cuts across families, generations and cultures. This will be the strongest test of whoever takes command, whether they can maintain stability and deal with China to improve the international standing of Taiwan. Sunday, Mar 21, 2004 Controversial victory for Chen President Chen Shui-bian scraped home in yesterday's presidential election but his opponent Lien Chan refused to concede and will seek the election's annulment. As of Sunday, the Opposition KMT party obtained a High Court decision to seal all ballot boxes for a possible re-count. Incumbent President Chen Shui-bian and his running-mate Annette Lu of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday won the 2004 presidential election against the rival ticket of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan and his vice-presidential candidate People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong by a narrow margin of 30,598 votes. But the nation's first-ever referendum failed to get the number of voters necessary to make the result valid. Only 45.17 percent of eligible voters took part. The Referendum Law requires at least 50 percent of those eligible to cast votes to make the vote valid. Voting, which took place from 8am to 4pm was peaceful with no major incidents reported, and only a few isolated cases of the electoral laws being broken. Some 13,251,719 people voted in the presidential election, a turnout of 80.28 percent of the 16,507,179 eligible voters. The DPP candidates won 6,471,970 votes, or 50.11 percent of the total cast, while Lien and Soong got 6,442,452 or 49.89 percent. Invalid votes totaled 337,297, representing 2.5 percent of the those cast. Speaking before an angry crowd in front of the pan-blue camp's election campaign headquarters in Taipei, Lien refused to concede defeat and said the alliance would file a lawsuit against the result announced by the Central Electoral Commission (CEC), claiming the election was invalid and demanding the result should be annulled. "Such a thin margin is the result of the uncertainties left by yesterday's gunshots the truth of which has yet to be clarified," Lien said. "It was an unfair election," said Lien angrily. "Therefore, we will file a lawsuit against the election result. We demand the CEC seal all ballot boxes nationwide immediately and wait for the authorities to recount the ballots." "Prepare to annul the election," he told the frenzied crowd. Comment: The initial reports indicate that the KMT are not accepting the results and have asked for a recount. However, they have also been socially and politically irresponsible by allowing their leaders and supporters to stir up resentment over the voting result. The situation early Sunday morning was very unhealthy in some of the big cities, particularly Taipei, with any potential flashpoint ready to break into something more serious. Watch this space for updated news.
Sunday, Mar 21, 2004
President Chen and Vice-President Lu Shot During Campaign Drive by in Tainan
Officials said they now believe President Chen Shui-bian was the sole intended target in Friday's shooting and that Vice President Annette Lu was hit by accident. (The shooting apparently occurred just a block away from Ian's Office - the sound of firecrackers was clearly heard and a potential cover for the shooting). The police yesterday said that they are looking for only one gunman in connection with the shooting of President Chen Shui-bian and Vice President Annette Lu in Tainan City on Friday. "We still have not identified this person but he shall be the suspect of the case, according to our investigation," said Hou You-yi, the commissioner of the National Police Administration's Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB). The bureau held three press conferences yesterday to update the public on the latest developments in their investigation of the shooting. It also released a drawing of the suspect, who was described as a strong man with a buzz cut hairdo and about 170cm tall. The police now believe that the gunman fired at least two shots and that Chen was the sole intended target. They said the trajectories of the two bullets they discovered made it unlikely that the gunman had also aimed at Lu. The police hypothesized that the gunman fired his first shot toward the front of the Jeep Wrangler in which Chen and Lu were standing. They believe the trajectory of the first bullet shifted after it went through the Jeep's windshield and hit Lu's right knee. Then, as the Jeep moved closer to the gunman, he fired a second shot, the one that hit Chen's stomach. The police said both shots were fired within 10m of the president's vehicle. According to witnesses' testimony, the gunman left the scene immediately on a scooter. The witnesses also said the gunman was wearing a motorcycle helmet that hid his face and a T-shirt from Chen's campaign headquarters. Hou said that in addition to the lead bullet discovered in Chen's clothing when he was rushed to the hospital, a copper bullet was found under Lu's seat in the Jeep. The police said the lead bullet was an 8.1mm and the copper bullet was an 8.09mm. They said both bullets were homemade and of their poor quality. However, while officers believed that both bullets were fired by pistols they cannot confirm whether both were fired by the same pistol. In the meantime, authorities said No. 12, Sec. 3, Jinhua Road was the location of the shooting -- as this is where the police discovered two bullet cases on Friday. Tainan City Police Depart-ment's Criminal Investigation Corp Chief Liao Tsung-shan said that the two bullet cases found at the scene had been touched by many people so it would be difficult to identify a suspect's fingerprints. Comment: The initial reports of the shooting and investigation appeared to have a lack of professionalism. from press reports, the car continued on the streets some 10km before action was taken, the security staff taking no action over the bullet hole on the front windscreen, Chen and Lu were still standing in the car as clear targets for this extra 10km. It took the police almost two days to figure out how both were shot. No person has yet been arrested or brought in to question. The bullets were found in the street after being manhandled by the public and no member of the public has apparently come forward to give information if they were beside the shooter. The KMT party are claiming it was a set-up to get sympathy votes for Chen and the DPP - this typifies the KMT's outlook on the election - blame others, create suspicion and controversy rather than any responsible reaction. Others believe it was part of a plot by the illegal gambling lords who appeared to be losing millions as Chen dropped behind the KMT in opinion polls. With the poor security cover, lack of direct clues and confusion, it would appear that any investigation will be half-fetched and unlikely to get the real culprits. Watch this space!!! Update:
Shooting
probe unlikely to help KMT In preliminary comments on the investigation, an advance team of forensic specialists from the United States appears to support the official view that President Chen Shui-bian and Vice-President Annette Lu were wounded by shots fired during a Tainan campaign parade. Defeated KMT presidential candidate Lien Chan and People First Party vice-presidential candidate James Soong had recommended the team, which is directed by famed Taiwan-born forensics expert Henry Lee of the Connecticut State Police crime lab, and the government accepted the recommendation. A three-member advance party sent by Lee, who is expected to arrive in Taiwan early next month, completed their work yesterday. Wecht, speaking for the three-man team, said that the president's abdominal injury had ``all the characteristics of a gunshot wound''. He added that fresh blood on the wound, as shown in photos taken in the hospital's emergency room, indicate that it had occurred just before the president's arrival at the hospital. After visiting the scene of the shooting, they retraced the president's route to the Chi Mai Teaching Hospital, and interviewed doctors who treated the victims. ``Everything is completely consistent - no discrepancies, nothing strange,'' Wecht said. The investigation was being conducted in a ``completely open way'' and the team was provided with everything that they asked for, he said. This apparently included an opportunity for Wecht to personally examine Chen's wound - which he did yesterday. ``Yes, I did meet the president ... and did examine his wound. He was very gracious. I took some photos. I can tell you that the wound is completely consistent with a gunshot wound. It fits in with being 10 days old, and correlated with the pictures from the hospital. I have no reason to believe it was not an injury of an acute nature sustained on that day,'' Wecht said. While the probe continues, Tainan police say they are looking for two suspects who were spotted by surveillance video cameras fleeing the scene of the shooting. Two apparently home-made bullets were recovered - one caught in the president's jacket and the other, which may have struck the vice-president's knee, on the floor of the vehicle in which the two leaders had been riding. Two shell casings, believed to match the two recovered bullets, were later recovered along the parade route, suggesting that the shots were fired from the street by someone who was standing among spectators who were setting off a barrage of firecrackers at the time. Local shopkeepers in the vicinity of 12 Jin Hua Road, the address where the casings were found, who were present at the time the president's motorcade passed, say it would have been impossible to hear a gunshot because of the noise of firecrackers. ``The other thing is that nobody was looking at what was going on behind them,'' Wang Jun-chin, owner of an optometry shop adjacent to the shooting site, said. ``Everyone was looking forward into the street towards A-Bian.'' (A-Bian is the popular nickname of Chen.) If the investigation into the shooting confirms that the incident was an attempted assassination, it would undercut one of the key arguments made by Lien and Soong for an annulment of the election results. Update: 20 September 2004 Nothing of interest has shown up yet, the police appear to have given up. Meanwhile the KMT still refer to the shooting as the main reason they lost the election.
|
|
|
The
year to fear for Taiwan: 2006
Apr 10, 2004
Identity crisis within Taiwan's military
|
|
|
11 Nov 2004 03:02:25 GMT
TAIPEI, Nov 11
(Reuters) - An earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale
It was the third strong tremor this week to strike the island, which lies on a seismically active stretch of the Pacific basin. A 6.7-magnitude earthquake struck Taiwan late on Monday, followed by a 5.5 tremor on Wednesday. The epicentre of Thursday's quake, which struck at 10.16 a.m. (0216 GMT), was about 47 km (29 miles) southeast of Ilan county on the northeast coast, at a depth of 14 km (9 miles), the Central Weather Bureau said in a statement. This as the third earthquake to hit in 4 days. A map of the various locations is shown here.
Strong quake rocks Taiwan
By Alice Hung TAIPEI (Reuters) - A strong earthquake in the Pacific Ocean off Taiwan has rocked the island's northeast, damaging buildings and injuring several people, officials say. The tremor, the strongest since an earthquake in 1999 that killed thousands, lasted for nearly one minute, shaking skyscrapers in the capital, Taipei, during the lunch-hour rush. "It was very scary. I wanted to run but didn't know where to go," an old man, who was in a restaurant in the world's tallest building, the 508-metre (1,667-foot) Taipei 101, said on television. "It felt just like the one in 1999," said the man who was visiting Taipei from the central mountainous county of Nantao, the epicentre of the earthquake five years ago. Friday's tremor, which measured 7.0 on the opened-ended Richter scale, had its epicentre at about 110 km (68 miles) east of Ilan on the northeastern coast, at a depth of 59 km (37 miles), the Central Weather Bureau said. The United States Geological Survey put the magnitude of the earthquake at 6.7. The government's Disaster Recovery Centre said the quake damaged some houses and injured a few people, but there were no major damage or casualties. It did not confirm earlier television reports that a house had collapsed in the northern county of Taoyuan, injuring one. "There was one woman in her 40s who received minor head injuries when a water tower toppled off a tin veranda and on to the street," said a disaster official said. A dozen workers were trapped inside the elevators of Taipei 101 -- built to withstand the strongest earthquake in a 2,500-year cycle -- but they were rescued. Seimologists told people to be prepared for aftershocks in coming days. "It's a 7.0 earthquake so we will continue to have aftershocks in the next few days, but their magnitude should not exceed the main quake," Central Weather Bureau seismologist Kuo Kai-wen said. Also in Taoyuan, fire engulfed a factory owned by Teco Electric and Machinery Co, but it was not clear if it was related to the earthquake. The damage was not immediately known. Earthquakes occur frequently in Taiwan, which lies on a seismically active stretch of the Pacific basin. The mass rapid transit system in the capital was briefly suspended after the quake. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world's top contract chipmaker, said it had no immediate reports of damage from the earthquake, but would investigate. Chinese Petroleum Corp said its refinery in northern Taiwan was operating normally. Japan's Kyodo News Agency said a quake of magnitude 6.6 had jolted some small islands that are part of Japan's Okinawa island chain, about 1,600 km (1,000 miles) southwest of Tokyo, at around the same time when parts of Taiwan shook. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage. One of Taiwan's most deadly quakes occurred in September 1999. Measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale, it killed more than 2,400 people and destroyed or damaged 50,000 buildings. Taiwan Struck by Magnitude 7 Quake, Worst Since 1999 Oct. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Taiwan was struck by a magnitude 7 earthquake, its worst since the trembler that killed 2,500 people in 1999. There were no immediate reports of casualties. The quake occurred at 12:08 p.m. and was centered 109 kilometers (66 miles) off the northeast shore, the Central Weather Bureau said. It was also felt in southern Japan. A fire at Teco Electric & Machinery Co., reported just after the earthquake struck, hasn't been linked to the trembler yet, said Chan Chang-hao, a firefighter in the county. A ``building'' reported to have collapsed turned out to be a water tank, he said. One person was injured. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world's biggest made-to-order chipmaker, United Microelectronics Corp. and other companies reported no disruption to operations. ``We're all fine,'' said Chinese Petroleum Vice President C.S. Lin by phone. Taipei 101, the world's tallest skyscraper, wasn't damaged, though 20 construction workers on lunch break were temporarily trapped in an elevator, said Joy Su, the building's public information officer, said by phone. ``Everything is fine, and it's business as usual,'' she said. ``We have no immediate damage at our plants, but we will make checks to ensure our production lines haven't been affected,'' said J.H. Tzeng, spokesman for Taiwan Semiconductor, which is located in the city of Hsinchu south of Taipei. Quake Prediction Professor Lee Chyi-tyi, a seismology researcher at National Central University, predicted that Taiwan faced a major earthquake with a magnitude as strong as 7 because of activity along a fault line, Apple Daily in Taipei reported on Sept. 9. It's the same fault line that caused a 1848 earthquake that killed thousands of people, the newspaper said. Today's quake was the worst since the magnitude 7.6 earthquake on Sept. 21, 1999, which did an estimated $9 billion of damage. A magnitude 7 quake is considered a major one capable of inflicting heavy damage. The island sits along faults between the Philippine Sea tectonic plate and the Eurasian Continental tectonic plate. Quakes occur as the plates push together. Earthquake rocks eastern Taiwan; 2 killed Saturday 1st May 2004
Two Taiwanese were killed and a Canadian tourist was injured yesterday when an earthquake measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale rocked eastern Taiwan, according to rescuers from the Hualien County Fire Department. The dead pair was found in a van that was crushed by a large rock that rolled down a mountain at Taroko Gorge, a popular tourist spot in eastern Hualien County, according to the rescuers. Cable station ETTV identified the victims as Lai Hsiu-chuan, 59, and his grandson Lai Wei-hau, 11, aboriginal residents living in the area. A Canadian tourist visiting the gorge was also slightly hurt by a falling rock, officials said. Traffic to the scenic spot was partially paralyzed as a result of the landslides and heavy rain. By late yesterday afternoon, workers had begun removing debris from the road, allowing smaller vehicles to leave, but at least 22 buses were still unable to pass, ETTV said. The tremor hit at 3:56 pm with an epicenter 7.4 kilometers west of Hsincheng in Hualien and 17.8 kilometers underground, according to the Seismology Center. "Our car was shaken. At first, I thought that had been caused by a hollow on the road and later heard there had been an earthquake," TV footage showed a tourist in Hualien as saying. The Hualien area, with its mountains, waterfalls and rivers, is a popular weekend destination for Taiwanese and foreign tourists. Yesterday's quake was felt in most parts of the island, weather bureau official Kuo Kai-wen told reporters. The quake had an intensity of 7.0 in Taroko, Hualien; 5.0 in Hualien City and Nanshan in Ilan County; 3.0 in Techi, Sun Moon Lake and Tsauling in central Taiwan; 2.0 in Taipei, Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Changhua, Chiayi, Tainan and Ilan City; and 1.0 in Kaohsiung and Taichung City.
Earthquake Shakes
Taiwan's Capital TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) - Taiwan's biggest earthquake of the year shook a southeastern region Wednesday and triggered a series of strong aftershocks. No damage or injuries were immediately reported. The 6.6-magnitude tremor's epicenter was near the city of Taitung, about 190 miles south of the capital, Taipei, the Central Weather Bureau said. The quake was strong enough to shake buildings in Taipei for about one minute. Less than an hour later, at least four aftershocks hit the Taitung region. Their magnitude ranged from 4.6 to 5.1, the Central Weather Bureau said. The 6.6-magnitude quake was the biggest this year, the bureau said. This year's second-strongest tremor was a 6.5-magnitude quake in June located in the Pacific Ocean off the east coast city of Hualien, the bureau said. Tremors frequently rattle the island but most cause little or no damage. But a massive quake in 1999 killed about 2,400 people. Shake,
rattle and roll as second earthquake hits
An earthquake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale rattled the nation yesterday afternoon, making it the strongest quake this year. No casualty or property damages were reported as of press time. According to Kuo Kai-wen, director of the Central Weather Bureau's Seismology Center, the odds of having another tremor measuring the similar magnitude as yesterday's in the near future are slim. "I don't think the public should worry about having another quake as big as this one since a lot of energy has been released the past two days," Kuo said, adding that statistics show that an average of two or three earthquakes of magnitude 6 or above hit the nation every year. Yesterday's earthquake took place at 4:40pm, centering about 36km east of Hualien County and 28km below the sea floor. The quake lasted for about 30 seconds and was followed by several smaller aftershocks. On Monday, a quake registering 6.3 shook the nation. The quake was centered 25km east of Ilan County and 21.3km below the sea floor. The intensity of yesterday's tremor measured 2 in Taipei City and 3 in Kaohsiung City and Taipei County. In eastern Taiwan, the intensity registered 5 in Taitung County and 4 in Ilan County and Hualien City. Since no earthquake with a magnitude of 5.5 has hit the nation since last September, Kuo said yesterday's and Monday's temblors were conducive to releasing energy. According to Kuo, six earthquakes registering magnitude 6 and above hit the nation last year, including one measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale in Hualien in March. A senior seismologist at the Seismology Center, Wu Yih-min, said that although yesterday's and Monday's tremors were two independent ones, they shared certain characteristics. "Both were caused by a collision between the Philippines and Eurasian tectonic plates. Among the differences were the direction of their movements," Wu said. Huang Bor-shouh, a research fellow at the Academia Sinica's Institute of Earth Sciences, dismissed the speculation that yesterday's and Monday's earthquakes were precursors to a bigger one. "Although no one can predict when or where an earthquake will strike, theoretically I don't think a bigger tremor will take place in the near future," he said. Huang, however, added that he does not rule out the possibility of seeing another quake with a similar magnitude to yesterday's hitting the nation by the end of the year. Lin Chao-chung, director of the Central Geological Survey under the Ministry of Economic Affairs, said the public should pay more heed to earthquakes taking place under the island. "Since earthquakes centering below the sea floor cause less damage than those below ground, more attention should be paid to the latter," he said.
TAIPEI, May 15 (Reuters) - An earthquake measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale rattled Taiwan on Thursday, but there were no immediate reports of casualties and damage, officials said. The epicentre of the quake that struck around 9.17 a.m. (0117 GMT) was about 63 km (39 miles) east of Keelung in Taiwan's northern coast at a depth of four km, the Central Weather Bureau said in a statement. Earthquakes happen frequently in Taiwan, which lies on a seismically active stretch of the Pacific basin. One of Taiwan's worst recorded quakes occurred in September 1999. Measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale, it killed more than 2,400 people and destroyed or damaged 50,000 buildings.
|
|
|
One dead, two missing as Late Season tropical storm batters Taiwan
TAIPEI (AFP) Dec 04, 2004 Bureau meteorologists said the strength of the rare December typhoon was greatly reduced after it made landfall in Fungliao Township, Pingtung County at 7:40am. It left Taimali Township, Taitung County for sea at 9: 30am. A woman was killed during the storm when she was hit by a flying billboard while riding her scooter in Tainan County. Rescuers are currently searching for two people who went missing in Hualien. One was swept into a river while driving, and the other was engulfed in a mudslide as he was checking his water main. In eastern Hualien county, a 60-year-old man was missing after he fell from a bridge and a 65 year-old man was missing after his car was hit by falling rocks, the national rescue center said. Sixty-two places around the country reported rainfall of more than 300mm over a 24-hour period. The Pulowan mountainous community in eastern Hualien County recorded 800mm of rain. No major casualties were reported in Taipei, but Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) urged the public to be on alert as there could still be heavy rain. In Taipei, Yangmingshan registered the most rainfall of mountainous areas at 160mm, while Nankang registered the most in the plains at 125mm. The Council of Agriculture (COA) estimated that the typhoon caused agricultural losses of NT$2.60 million (US$81,250). COA officials said that 675 hectares of fields in Pingtung County were damaged, with crops of wax apples, watermelons and onions being most affected. The Ministry of Transportation and Communications said that as of 10am, Nanmadol had damaged 12 highways, mostly in eastern Taiwan and Kaohsiung.
In Tainan - Ian had a Typhoon Day holiday as most of the Saturday morning had heavy rain and windy conditions - of course, this would only be a "normal" windy & rainy day in winter time back in Scotland.
At least four die as storm hits Taiwan Tuesday, Oct 26, 2004
At least four people died after Typhoon Nock-Ten pounded northern Taiwan with heavy rains and strong winds yesterday. Forecasters from the Central Weather Bureau said yesterday that the weather might turn mild today but lower temperatures are expected. Beginning Sunday night, the weather in the nation had become affected by the passage of Nock-Ten. Bureau officials said that the typhoon landed on Toucheng in Ilan yesterday morning and left Taiwan from Tamsui in Taipei County at 1:15pm. Forecasters said that Nock-Ten changed its direction gradually toward the northeast. According to the bureau, Nock-Ten was centered at a position at sea 80km north of Taipei at 4pm yesterday, and will be 540km northeast of Taipei at 2pm today. More than 5,300 foreign fishermen were allowed to shelter in harbors and buildings on land, according to the Cabinet's National Disaster Prevention and Relief Center. In nine affected areas, blasts of wind blew shop signs and street lights to the ground and damaged trees. In northern Taiwan, the water surface of the Tamsui, Keeling, Dahan and Sindian Rivers exceeded alarming levels. Accumulated rainfall from midnight on Sunday to 5pm yesterday exceed 300mm in many places in Taipei and Taoyuan Counties, as well as Taipei City. However, the worst situation was reported in Taipei County, where the Keelung River rose suddenly due to heavy rains. As of press time, the Taipei County
Government reported four deaths related to the storm. Rescuers recovered the
body of a television reporter near a spillway tunnel in Rueifang. The body
of fireman Chen Chih-hsiang ( Meanwhile, two residents of Shuangsi were drowned by floods while in their homes. In addition, in Wanli, a woman falling into a swollen river yesterday afternoon was reported missing. The deaths resulting from the passage of Nock-Ten shocked high ranking officials. President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday afternoon inspected the Cabinet's disaster relief center, urging the establishment of crisis consciousness. Taiwan village wiped
off the map in a few terrifying seconds
CHUPEI,
Taiwan : In less than 10 seconds the life of orchard worker Chen Bi-chu was
changed forever as a vast wall of mud smashed her flimsy house into pieces
and buried her family. The stunned survivors of the landslide in a remote aborigine village in northern Taiwan consider themselves lucky. The accident on Wednesday, triggered by torrential rains brought by Typhoon Aere, wiped out their entire village and is believed to have killed at least 15 family, friends or neighbours. The rubble from the 20 destroyed houses in the small farming village of Tochang together with the river of mud and rocks left a pile five-storeys high, said the national rescue center. Rescuers have
so far recovered just three bodies, but 12 villagers remain missing presumed
dead. Only around 20 of the 100 inhabitants of the village were home when disaster struck three days after Typhoon Aere, packing winds of 80 miles (130 kilometers) per hour, started dumping vast quantities of rain on the remote mountains. A total of 1,335 millimeters (53.4 inches) of rain fell on the area in three days, leading the government to issue a landslide warning to 80 towns across the island off the southeastern Chinese coast. The tragedy has led to heated debate over why the village was not evacuated before disaster struck. Tochang resident Chou Mei-li said her family had ignored an evacuation alert since the village had not experienced a mudslide since a typhoon in 1962. "It never occurred to me that things could get this serious," said Chou, who was airlifted to safety with her baby, both unharmed. "Now I fear returning to the village and I have to find a new place to live." Cheng Yung-chin, the magistrate of Hsinchu County who is facing criticism for failing to evacuate the village, also blamed the catastrophe on the forces of nature. "The whole mountain literally crumbled down in 10 seconds. It's beyond our imagination," he said, insisting that his office had followed the instructions of the central government to order an evacuation. Tochang was the worst-hit of 26 aboriginal villages in Wufeng Township, where all the roads and a bridge leading to the outside world were destroyed. Rescuers, backed by military helicopters, evacuated some 70 people from the villages Thursday. They were hoping to airlift another 300 to safety in the Wufeng area on Friday.
An aerial shot shows Tochang village in Hsinchu county devasted by a mudslide triggered by Typhoon Aere. -- AFP Death toll from Aere climbs to 30
By Chiu
Yu-Tzu A landslide killed 15 people -- including three police officers -- in a mountain village as Typhoon Aere pounded northern Taiwan with heavy rain and fierce winds, an official said yesterday. The nation's death toll climbed to 30. The mudslide wiped out 24 homes Wednesday in Wufeng in Hsinchu County, but many residents had been evacuated before the typhoon began battering the island, county commissioner Cheng Yung-chin told reporters. "The landslide buried all of the homes in just 10 seconds," he said. The three policemen had helped to evacuate the village, and died after going back to urge others to leave, Cheng said. "We told them to evacuate, but they went back to carry out their duties," he said. Cheng and other disaster officials said 15 people died in the landslide. Helicopters were dispatched to airlift food and water to about 800 residents trapped in Wufeng and nearby Janshih town, where roads were destroyed, officials said. Other deaths reported yesterday included a man killed by a falling tree and another who died when a utility pole fell on him, disaster officials said. Both deaths were in Taipei County. A Presbyterian minister died when flood waters washed away his riverside home in the central city of Taichung, disaster officials said. According to the Cabinet's National Disaster Prevention and Protection Commission, in addition to the fatalities there were also 60 injuries, while at least 18 people remained missing. However, the death toll could increase sharply because rescuers yesterday began to arrive in isolated villages by helicopter. Yesterday morning, a rescue team from the National Fire Agency arrived in remote Taoshan Village in Wufeng Township, Hsinchu County, where more than 20 houses were engulfed by floods and mudflows within minutes on Wednesday. Using advanced equipment, rescuers found several of the bodies and police officers who had been stationed at Tuchang Police Post. Meanwhile, Premier Yu Shyi-kun and high-ranking officials of the Cabinet arrived Wufeng Township by helicopter. "The responsibility pertaining to belated evacuation advisories will have to be shouldered by certain officials," Yu said. According to Hsinchu County Commissioner Cheng Yung-chin (鄭永金), seven of the bodies recovered have been identified. Currently, a team of 30 rescuers is continuing to search for victims and possible survivors. "I've asked for assistance from central government. First, roads have to be repaired," Cheng said. Yesterday afternoon, mini cranes were sent to the scene by an Air Force cargo plane to facilitate the search. Chung Chin-liang (鍾進亮), the chief of the private Hsinchu Rescue Association, told the Taipei Times yesterday that a team of rescue personnel from the association would leave for remote Pailan at Taoshan Village to offer assistance today, if roads are repaired. In central Taiwan, mudflows in Hoping township, Taichung County, on Wednesday led to the death of one resident and the disappearance of several villagers.
Typhoon leaves 19 dead in Taiwan
2004/7/5
The death toll rose to 19 while the estimated financial losses wreaked by Typhoon Mindulle could increase to more than NT$10 billion after three power plants were flooded in central Taiwan. While rescuers battled continuous rains and muddy flood waters to evacuate trapped villagers from mountainsides, officials said the death toll from the tropical storm rose to 19, with 10 others still missing. The typhoon, which has brought southern Taiwan's worst flooding in 25 years, also hit hard on the eastern and central parts of the island. Mudslides covered about 30 houses on a hill in central Taiwan's Nantou County, and five bodies were recovered from the rubble, the National Disaster Relief Center said.
In Nantou's Jenai village, where a wooden bridge was washed away by flood waters, soldiers used ropes to pull residents from a cliff and across a creek. At a nearby resort destroyed by rock slides, about 150 tourists were placed in a temporary shelter as roads were washed away and they were unable to vacate the area, officials said. Another mudslide in nearby Taichung County killed three people, and an 80-year-old woman and her 4-year-old grandson drowned in their flooded home there, police said.
Rivers swept three others to their deaths over the weekend, police said. More than a dozen bridges remained closed because of flood damage and landslides took place at 65 spots on the highway networks. In parts of the island where the rains had eased, residents cleaned their muddy floors and houses, piling damaged furniture along the streets.
The military dispatched soldiers and vehicles to rescue hundreds of villagers and tourists trapped in mountainous regions, officials said. The interminable rains prevented workers from the state-run Taiwan Power Co. from quickly restoring electricity to tens of thousands of households.
Water supply to 200,000 homes in the greater Taichung area was suspended. Three hydroelectric power plants along the swollen Tachia River in central Taiwan were flooded. The flood was described as an after-effect of the deadly earthquake that devastated the central region of the island in 1999. Taipower executives said the restoration of the damaged equipment and construction work will cost between NT$2 billion and NT$3 billion. But the estimated total financial costs would reach at least NT$10 billion when including the loss in sales of electricity for the next two to three years, they said. But they stressed that there should be no power shortage since other power plants can make up the shortfall.
The Council of Agriculture estimated crop and infrastructure damage at NT$1.4 billion. Prices for some vegetables and fruits have shot up on the market. Government agencies urges people to maintain preparation for torrential rains, flash floods, and mudslides for the next two or three days. They said those living in low-lying areas should evacuate if possible.
Before hitting Taiwan, Mindulle killed at least 32 people in the Philippines and left 11 others missing. The storm pushed on toward South Korea on Saturday, but torrential rains at its fringes continued yesterday in many of Taiwan's mountainous areas.
This site was last updated 09/09/06 |
shook
northeast Taiwan on Thursday causing buildings to sway in the capital,
Taipei, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage,
officials said.
