A hovering front and southwesterly airstream yesterday dropped more than 600mm of rain over a few hours in the nation’s northern coastal regions, killing one person and injuring five as of 8pm, authorities said.
The New Taipei City Fire Department said the torrential downpour caused 12 roads in the city to be closed, as well as schools and businesses in Bali (八里), Jinshan (金山), Sanjhih (三芝), Shihmen (石門), Tamsui (淡水) and Wanli (萬里) districts, adding that 256 people were evacuated and 156 were displaced.
New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) and New Taipei City Department of Social Affairs Director Chang Chin-li (張錦麗) visited Mackay Memorial Hospital in Tamsui to offer their condolences to the family of the deceased.
Photo: Courtesy of a reader
Chu said he would authorize district and school administrators to decide when to reopen after assessing the situation.
The delay in closures triggered criticism from the public after the rain worsened, stranding many people.
Rainfall in Shihmen District measured 114mm per hour, nearly the national record of 128mm per hour in Alishan (阿里山), the city government said.
Photo: Courtesy of a reader
More than 185 areas nationwide reported flooding, while more than 10,000 households were left without electricity, officials said.
The Central Weather Bureau warned that the weather system would bring downpours nationwide, with torrential rain — accumulated rainfall of 350mm or more within 24 hours — or extremely torrential rain — 500mm or more over a 24-hour period — likely on the northern coast.
As of 4pm, accumulated rainfall in several districts of New Taipei City was classified as extremely torrential, reaching 643mm in Sanzhi, 630mm in Shihmen’s Fuguijiao (富貴角), 572.5mm in Jinshan’s Sanhe (三和) and 534mm in Jinshan, bureau data showed.
Photo courtesy of Keelung’s Zhongshan District Office
Elsewhere, accumulated rainfall totaled 428mm in Kaohsiung’s Taoyuan District (桃源) and 356mm in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), it showed.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Premier Lin Chuan (林全) said that people in mountainous areas should be evacuated as a precaution to prevent them from being trapped when the weather system passes over southern Taiwan.
The Water Resources Agency said that, in addition to flooded areas in New Taipei City, Keelung’s Jhongshan (中山), Renai (仁愛) and Xinyi (信義) districts were on a level 1 flood alert — imminent flooding if rain continues — and the Jhongjheng (中正), Anle (安樂) and Nuannuan (暖暖) districts were on a level 2 flood alert — possible flooding within three hours if rain continues.
Photo copied by Lin Chia-tung, Taipei Times
The Directorate-General of Highways (DGH) said that several sections of Provincial Highway No. 2, a major coastal roadway in northern Taiwan, have been closed indefinitely due to flooding and mudslides caused by the rain.
The affected areas are sections 15K-52K between New Taipei City’s Sanjhih and Wanli; 67K-71K along Bisha Port (碧砂港) in Keelung; and 75K-84K between the coastal scenic areas of Ruibin (瑞濱) and Bitou (鼻頭) in New Taipei City, the DGH said.
The DGH urged motorists to avoid using those sections of the coastal highway over the next few days as workers clear debris and perform repairs.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
Flights to and from Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) resumed at 12:43pm after a two-and-a-half hour suspension due to heavy rainfall in Taipei, the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) said.
A total of 137 flights were canceled or delayed at Songshan airport, including three flights that were unable to land and were redirected to airports in Taichung and Kaohsiung, the CAA said.
Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport suspended ground operations at 10:45am, when it issued a thunderstorm warning, the CAA said, adding that the alert was not lifted until 12:40pm.
As of 1pm, 20 commercial passenger flights and one cargo flight had been canceled, while another 17 commercial flights and one cargo flight were delayed, airport data showed.
PEACE AND STABILITY: Maintaining the cross-strait ‘status quo’ has long been the government’s position, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan is committed to maintaining the cross-strait “status quo” and seeks no escalation of tensions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday, rebutting a Time magazine opinion piece that described President William Lai (賴清德) as a “reckless leader.” The article, titled “The US Must Beware of Taiwan’s Reckless Leader,” was written by Lyle Goldstein, director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Defense Priorities think tank. Goldstein wrote that Taiwan is “the world’s most dangerous flashpoint” amid ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He said that the situation in the Taiwan Strait has become less stable
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
REASSURANCE: The US said Taiwan’s interests would not be harmed during the talk and that it remains steadfast in its support for the nation, the foreign minister said US President Donald Trump on Friday said he would bring up Taiwan with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a meeting on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea this week. “I will be talking about Taiwan [with Xi],” Trump told reporters before he departed for his trip to Asia, adding that he had “a lot of respect for Taiwan.” “We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us. I think we’ll have a good meeting,” Trump said. Taiwan has long been a contentious issue between the US and China.
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
RSS