A front hovering over the nation since Friday has brought torrential rainfall, floods and landslides which have left two people dead, five injured and two missing.
A Central Weather Bureau observation station in Kaohsiung’s Taoyuan District (桃源) measured 1.339m of rainfall between Friday and yesterday, the highest in the nation.
According to the Taoyuan District Office, average rainfall in the district is 2.7575m per year.
Photo: Lee Jung-ping, Taipei Times
It was followed by Chiayi County’s Alishan Township (阿里山) and Nantou County’s Shenmu Village (神木村), which saw rainfall of 1.1645m and 1.122m, respectively, the bureau said.
One of the dead was found in a culvert in New Taipei City’s Bali District (八里) on Friday afternoon, after she and her motorcycle were carried away by floodwaters, Central Emergency Operation Center information showed.
Flooding also killed a man in New Taipei City’s Shimen District (石門), whose body was found on Saturday morning near his house.
Photo: Chen Wen-chan, Taipei Times
Meanwhile, three people in Keelung were injured. Among them was a child who was swept away by floodwaters while waiting at a bus stop.
The other two people sustained injuries while they were trapped in a basement.
Injuries were also reported in New Taipei City’s Gongliao (貢寮) and Shimen districts. The former involved a truck driver who was hurt after his truck overturned on a coastal highway. In the latter incident a man was injured in a landslide.
Photo: CNA
As of press time last night, rescuers were still trying to locate two people missing in Keelung and Nantou counties.
In addition, 15 mountain climbers were forced to take shelter at a forest workers’ dormitory in Shei-Pa National Park (雪霸國家公園) due to the rising level of a creek making it impossible to cross.
Incessant rainfall also caused 11 houses in Kaohsiung’s Taoyuan and Lioukuei (六龜) districts to collapse and be carried away by a river yesterday afternoon. No one was killed or injured, as the residents had evacuated in time.
Photo courtesy of the Third District Maintenance Construction Office
The nation yesterday began to gradually resume normal road, rail and air transport operations. In total, 20 domestic flights were canceled and five were delayed. Two international flights were delayed.
In addition, eight road sections on provincial highways No. 8, No. 14, No. 20, No. 24 and No. 29 remained closed to traffic yesterday due to road damage caused by landslides.
The front will gradually move away from Taiwan today, although chances of heavy or extremely heavy rainfall are still high across the nation, the bureau said.
Photo courtesy of the Third District Maintenance Construction Office
Cloudy skies are forecast from tomorrow through Thursday, although chances for afternoon storms remain high in some regions.
Photo: CNA
Conflict with Taiwan could leave China with “massive economic disruption, catastrophic military losses, significant social unrest, and devastating sanctions,” a US think tank said in a report released on Monday. The German Marshall Fund released a report titled If China Attacks Taiwan: The Consequences for China of “Minor Conflict” and “Major War” Scenarios. The report details the “massive” economic, military, social and international costs to China in the event of a minor conflict or major war with Taiwan, estimating that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) could sustain losses of more than half of its active-duty ground forces, including 100,000 troops. Understanding Chinese
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said it is closely monitoring developments in Venezuela, and would continue to cooperate with democratic allies and work together for regional and global security, stability, and prosperity. The remarks came after the US on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who was later flown to New York along with his wife. The pair face US charges related to drug trafficking and alleged cooperation with gangs designated as terrorist organizations. Maduro has denied the allegations. The ministry said that it is closely monitoring the political and economic situation
‘SLICING METHOD’: In the event of a blockade, the China Coast Guard would intercept Taiwanese ships while its navy would seek to deter foreign intervention China’s military drills around Taiwan this week signaled potential strategies to cut the nation off from energy supplies and foreign military assistance, a US think tank report said. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted what it called “Justice Mission 2025” exercises from Monday to Tuesday in five maritime zones and airspace around Taiwan, calling them a warning to “Taiwanese independence” forces. In a report released on Wednesday, the Institute for the Study of War said the exercises effectively simulated blocking shipping routes to major port cities, including Kaohsiung, Keelung and Hualien. Taiwan would be highly vulnerable under such a blockade, because it
UNRELENTING: China attempted cyberattacks on Taiwan’s critical infrastructure 2.63 million times per day last year, up from 1.23 million in 2023, the NSB said China’s cyberarmy has long engaged in cyberattacks against Taiwan’s critical infrastructure, employing diverse and evolving tactics, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday, adding that cyberattacks on critical energy infrastructure last year increased 10-fold compared with the previous year. The NSB yesterday released a report titled Analysis on China’s Cyber Threats to Taiwan’s Critical Infrastructure in 2025, outlining the number of cyberattacks, major tactics and hacker groups. Taiwan’s national intelligence community identified a large number of cybersecurity incidents last year, the bureau said in a statement. China’s cyberarmy last year launched an average of 2.63 million intrusion attempts per day targeting Taiwan’s critical
RSS