With the largest and highest police jurisdiction, which takes 13 days to patrol on foot, the police corps of the Yushan National Park faces the most difficult environment of any of Taiwan’s police divisions. For patrolling in mountainous areas, patrolmen must be equipped with outdoor survival skills, and the strength and determination of Rambo.
The 100,000 hectare park is almost the size of Changhua County and 10 times bigger than Hsinchu City, which means the 39 patrolmen have a broad beat to cover. Since the main peak is 3,952m high, they could claim to be the police with the “highest status” in Taiwan. But for them, mountain patrolling on foot is perhaps the most challenging task. It takes them from two to 13 days to patrol the 190km diameter of the park, which is almost the distance between Taipei and Taichung.
“If you are not interested in or capable of doing this, you will definitely apply for a transfer within half a year,” said Chou Yen-hui, the deputy captain of the corps. Most of the patrolmen are senior officers who have been there for over 10 years. Those who are unable to adapt to the mountain areas struggle to pass the practical training, and end up being assigned elsewhere.
“I don’t even remember what a decent meal is like,” said Chou, expressing his deepest feelings about mountain patrolling on foot, saying that such a task is like waging war single-handedly, as patrolmen are responsible for their own food and equipment. Apart from climbing steep hills, they are threatened by beasts and bugs. When there is no shack to stay in, they just put up a canvas tent and sleep in that. When they are short of drinking water, they collect dew from plants or pools.
To find the water essential to survival, the patrolmen often collect water from sources that are full of branches, leaves, or even animal excrement. “The brown-color water may still contain leeches or parasites. Before drinking it, we purify it a little and boil it, or add instant coffee or ginger powder,” said Chou. “Our patrolmen always come back with all kinds of wounds.”
Patrolman Wu Chi-feng has already served on the corps for 16 years. He just completed an eight-day task from an ancient trail and was bitten by leeches all over his body. But he is used to this, saying that his family supports his decision to work at the corps. “But communication is poor in the mountains. I disappear whenever I enter the mountains. I cannot contact them until I return to the corps, which worries them a lot.”
The patrolmen are responsible for forest protection, and they are missed by their families. Chou points out that they are not afraid of difficulties, but the sheer size of the park means they need extra men if they are to give proper protection to all the people, flora and fauna within their jurisdiction.
(LIBERTY TIMES, TRANSLATED BY EDDY CHANG)
警勤轄區最廣、海拔最高,步行巡邏一次最長要十三天,玉山國家公園警察隊服勤環境可說是警界的台灣之最,深山巡邏更須擁有野外求生技能,員警們若沒有藍波般的毅力與耐力,恐怕難以承受!
玉山國家公園面積達十萬公頃,將近一個彰化縣,是新竹市十倍大,僅三十九名隊員服勤,範圍廣闊,且達玉山主峰三千九百五十二公尺,堪稱國內「地位」最高的警察,惟對玉警隊隊員而言,深山步巡則是最具挑戰的任務,每次出勤最短兩天、最長達十三天,距離最長約一百九十公里,幾乎是從台北市到台中市的距離。
「沒有相當實力與興趣,不到半年一定會申請調離!」玉警隊副隊長周燕輝說,隊員大都是十年以上的資深隊員,山區、高地勤務適應不良的隊員往往無法通過實習訓練,只好另覓適當去處。
「三月不知肉味!」副隊長周燕輝道出深山步巡最深感受,步巡勤務視同獨力作戰,隊員必須負責自己所需糧食、裝備,除需穿梭攀爬山崖峭壁之中,還要面對獸、蟲侵擾,有時夜間沒有山屋可棲宿,只能就地搭起簡陋帆布露宿,缺水時則是靠著收集植物露水或水窟積水。
為找水求生,經常取用滿是估枝落葉,甚至動物排泄污染的水源,「咖啡色的水還可能有水蛭、寄生蟲,但為了喝水,只能稍加濾淨煮沸,或摻入即溶咖啡、薑粉飲用。」周燕輝說,「步巡人員一定會帶著大、小傷返回隊部。」
已在玉警隊服務十六年的隊員吳吉峰最近剛完成日治越嶺古道的八天步巡勤務,身上被螞蝗叮咬多處傷口,習以為常地說,「雖家人能認同他在玉警隊服務,但山區通訊不良,每次上山就像失蹤一般,回到隊部才能報平安,家人仍很擔心。」
背負著山林保育重責及家人掛念,副隊長周燕輝指出,玉警隊隊員不怕吃苦,卻面臨轄區遼闊人力不足的難題,尤其玉山公園野生動物多樣、植物林相豐富,若無充足人力,縱使隊員工作加重,還是難以應付勤務的需要。
(自由時報記者陳信仁)
A: Artificial intelligence technology has been causing controversy lately: a student was caught cheating with AI to win the grand prize in an art contest. B: That’s so absurd. Does this mean that AI paints better than humans? A: Maybe. Luckily, the student was later disqualified. B: And more absurdly, it’s becoming more and more popular to use AI technology to “resurrect” people. A: Yeah, some netizens even posted videos featuring the late singer CoCo Lee, who was “resurrected” by them with AI software. A: 人工智慧的爭議不斷,有學生違規使用AI參加美術展,甚至贏得首獎。 B: 真誇張,這是不是代表AI比人類還強大? A: 或許吧,幸好得獎資格被取消。 B: 還有更誇張的︰讓死者重現的「AI復活」技術越來越熱門。 A: 對啊,還有網友製作已故歌后李玟「復活」的影片呢! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
It’s no secret that Japanese people have a deep affection for noodles. Like in the rest of East Asia, noodles are an important staple food, second only to rice. Japanese people have enjoyed noodles for over 1,000 years. The first noodles came from China and were introduced around 800 CE. As time passed, noodles in Japan not only became widespread but also developed some unique Japanese characteristics. The three most popular types of noodles in Japan are ramen, soba, and udon. Ramen, typically made from wheat flour, is usually thin and firm. The dough is kneaded and left to
Rice is an essential ingredient in Taiwanese cuisine. Many foods are made of rice, adding more variety to our cooking, such as rice cake, or “gui.” Wagui is made by steaming rice flour batter in a bowl. The term “gui” refers to a type of food made from rice, while “wa” refers to a bowl. The pronunciation of “gui” in Taiwanese Hokkien is similar to the word for “nobility” in Chinese, so it is common for people to prepare various types of gui, including wagui, as offerings to the gods or ancestors,. 米是台灣重要的主食,用米製成的食品十分多元,豐富我們的飲食,如米做成的「粿」。粿的意思是米做成的糕點,碗粿是將在來米漿倒入碗中蒸熟,因而得名。粿因為音同「貴」,因此碗粿等粿食常用作供品祭拜神明和祖先。 nobility (n.) 高貴,高尚;貴族 offering (n.) 供品 While Taiwan may not be
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