The number of deaths caused by Typhoon Nari rose to 84 nationwide yesterday, the National Fire Administration's Disaster Rescue Command Center said.
Sixteen people were still reported missing as of yesterday, while 208 people were injured.
The death toll stood at 25 in Taipei City, 21 in Taipei County, 10 in Keelung City, 10 in Miaoli County, seven in Chiayi County, three in Taoyuan County, three in Hsinchu County, two in Tainan County, one in Hsinchu City and one in Changhua County, official data showed.
Despite the ongoing repair efforts, 216,458 households were still without power yesterday and another 1,755,030 households were without water.
With regard to railway transportation, the coastal route between Kaohsiung and Panchiao will resume operations tomorrow.
The underground tracks from Sungshan to Panchiao and from Sungshan to Fulung are expected to reopen in 10 days, while the line from Keelung to Patu and Taipei Railway Station are expected to be back in service in two weeks.
The floods triggered by the heavy rainfall brought by Nari subsided in most of the affected areas yesterday. But the basements of 1,411 buildings are still submerged in water.
In related news, the American Institute in Taiwan announced yesterday that it will present a US$25,000 check to the local Red Cross Society today to help with relief efforts.
"The contribution symbolizes the deep sympathy of the American people for the victims of Typhoon Nari and their families, and is to assist in the Taiwan reconstruction efforts," the institute said in a press release.
The government is aiming to recruit 1,096 foreign English teachers and teaching assistants this year, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. The foreign teachers would work closely with elementary and junior-high instructors to create and teach courses, ministry official Tsai Yi-ching (蔡宜靜) said. Together, they would create an immersive language environment, helping to motivate students while enhancing the skills of local teachers, she said. The ministry has since 2021 been recruiting foreign teachers through the Taiwan Foreign English Teacher Program, which offers placement, salary, housing and other benefits to eligible foreign teachers. Two centers serving northern and southern Taiwan assist in recruiting and training
WIDE NET: Health officials said they are considering all possibilities, such as bongkrekic acid, while the city mayor said they have not ruled out the possibility of a malicious act of poisoning Two people who dined at a restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Department Store Xinyi A13 last week have died, while four are in intensive care, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday. All of the outlets of Malaysian vegetarian restaurant franchise Polam Kopitiam have been ordered to close pending an investigation after 11 people became ill due to suspected food poisoning, city officials told a news conference in Taipei. The first fatality, a 39-year-old man who ate at the restaurant on Friday last week, died of kidney failure two days later at the city’s Mackay Memorial Hospital. A 66-year-old man who dined
‘CARRIER KILLERS’: The Tuo Chiang-class corvettes’ stealth capability means they have a radar cross-section as small as the size of a fishing boat, an analyst said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday presided over a ceremony at Yilan County’s Suao Harbor (蘇澳港), where the navy took delivery of two indigenous Tuo Chiang-class corvettes. The corvettes, An Chiang (安江) and Wan Chiang (萬江), along with the introduction of the coast guard’s third and fourth 4,000-tonne cutters earlier this month, are a testament to Taiwan’s shipbuilding capability and signify the nation’s resolve to defend democracy and freedom, Tsai said. The vessels are also the last two of six Tuo Chiang-class corvettes ordered from Lungteh Shipbuilding Co (龍德造船) by the navy, Tsai said. The first Tuo Chiang-class vessel delivered was Ta Chiang (塔江)
EYE ON STRAIT: The US spending bill ‘doubles security cooperation funding for Taiwan,’ while also seeking to counter the influence of China US President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law a US$1.2 trillion spending package that includes US$300 million in foreign military financing to Taiwan, as well as funding for Taipei-Washington cooperative projects. The US Congress early on Saturday overwhelmingly passed the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act 2024 to avoid a partial shutdown and fund the government through September for a fiscal year that began six months ago. Under the package, the Defense Appropriations Act would provide a US$27 billion increase from the previous fiscal year to fund “critical national defense efforts, including countering the PRC [People’s Republic of China],” according to a summary