Torrential rain that began on Saturday night has caused flooding in central and southern parts of the country, damaging roads and forcing more than 500 people to evacuate.
The Pingtung County Fire Department helped move six elderly residents from a nursing home in Gaoshu Township (高樹) as a surging river threatened to flood the area.
The only access to the county’s Wutai Township (霧台) was cut off by landslides on two sections of Highway No. 24. The electrical grid in Wutai was also damaged by rain.
Photo: Lo Hsin-chen, Taipei Times
Residents in Sihgou Village (泗溝) in Wanluan Township (萬巒) had to wade through thigh-high floodwater to leave.
Laiyi Township (來義) also evacuated residents.
The Directorate-General of Highways closed the makeshift road on the Central Cross-Island Highway after a huge landslide was reported at section 79K of the highway.
Three farmers who were picking vegetables at the time fled to avoid injury.
Between 12am and 7pm yesterday, Shangdewen (上德文) in Sandimen Township (三地門) in Pingtung received 504mm of rain. Dahanshan (大漢山) in Chunrih Township (春日) and Weiliaoshan (尾寮山) in Sandimen Township had accumulations of 458mm and 412mm respectively.
All the locations had what the Central Weather Bureau defines as extremely torrential rain — meaning that accumulated rainfall reached 350mm within a period of 24 hours.
Because the rain is expected to continue, the Executive Yuan has asked the public to avoid mountainous or coastal areas during this period of time.
Southern parts of the country can expect extremely heavy rain over the next two days, while the weather in other parts of Taiwan will also be rainy due to an air front from the southwest, the bureau said.
Premier Sean Chen (陳冲) has asked relevant ministries to take precautionary measures and support local governments if rescue efforts are needed, the Cabinet said in a statement yesterday.
Two emergency response centers have been opened in southern Taiwan, and the Council of Agriculture has a task force on standby to respond to mudslides, the Cabinet said.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs also has a task force ready to distribute water pumps in the event of flooding, it added.
The public is urged to avoid traveling near waterways, the Cabinet said.
In northern and northeastern areas of the country, afternoon thundershowers can be expected for the next two days, it said.
Kaohsiung and Pingtung could continue to experience extremely heavy showers, with up to 350mm of rainfall possible within a 24 hour period, the bureau said.
Heavy rain could also be expected in northern Taiwan after tomorrow, it said.
Additional reporting by CNA
DEFENSE: The first set of three NASAMS that were previously purchased is expected to be delivered by the end of this year and deployed near the capital, sources said Taiwan plans to procure 28 more sets of M-142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), as well as nine additional sets of National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), military sources said yesterday. Taiwan had previously purchased 29 HIMARS launchers from the US and received the first 11 last year. Once the planned purchases are completed and delivered, Taiwan would have 57 sets of HIMARS. The army has also increased the number of MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) purchased from 64 to 84, the sources added. Each HIMARS launch pod can carry six Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems, capable of
GET TO SAFETY: Authorities were scrambling to evacuate nearly 700 people in Hualien County to prepare for overflow from a natural dam formed by a previous typhoon Typhoon Podul yesterday intensified and accelerated as it neared Taiwan, with the impact expected to be felt overnight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, while the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration announced that schools and government offices in most areas of southern and eastern Taiwan would be closed today. The affected regions are Tainan, Kaohsiung and Chiayi City, and Yunlin, Chiayi, Pingtung, Hualien and Taitung counties, as well as the outlying Penghu County. As of 10pm last night, the storm was about 370km east-southeast of Taitung County, moving west-northwest at 27kph, CWA data showed. With a radius of 120km, Podul is carrying maximum sustained
Tropical Storm Podul strengthened into a typhoon at 8pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with a sea warning to be issued late last night or early this morning. As of 8pm, the typhoon was 1,020km east of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving west at 23kph. The storm carried maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA said. Based on the tropical storm’s trajectory, a land warning could be issued any time from midday today, it added. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said Podul is a fast-moving storm that is forecast to bring its heaviest rainfall and strongest
TRAJECTORY: The severe tropical storm is predicted to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday, and would influence the nation to varying degrees, a forecaster said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it would likely issue a sea warning for Tropical Storm Podul tomorrow morning and a land warning that evening at the earliest. CWA forecaster Lin Ting-yi (林定宜) said the severe tropical storm is predicted to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving west at 21kph and packing sustained winds of 108kph and gusts of up to 136.8kph, the CWA said. Lin said that the tropical storm was about 1,710km east of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, with two possible trajectories over the next one
RSS