President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) arrived back in Taiwan yesterday to visit areas devastated by Typhoon Bilis, after cutting short an overseas trip.
Chen was on his "journey of democratic diplomacy and friendship" to six of Taiwan's allies when the typhoon struck.
Upon his return to Taiwan, Chen, accompanied by Premier Tang Fei (唐飛) and other senior government officials, immediately flew to central Taiwan to inspect typhoon-related damage.
The president toured several affected townships in Nantou County, visits people whose homes were damaged and farmers whose crops were ruined.
Chen promised that relief funds would be issued to the victims in a month and ordered that transportation facilities should be promptly repaired and water and power supplies restored.
Also during the trip, Chen expressed approval for Tang's leadership during the typhoon and for taking preventative measures to reduce losses.
Typhoon Bilis, the strongest to hit Asia so far this year, swept over Taiwan from Tuesday evening through Wednesday, leaving at least 11 people dead, five missing and 108 others injured. The deaths included eight orchard workers who were buried alive by an avalanche triggered by the storm in Nantou County's Jenai township Tuesday night.
Nantou County was also hit hard by last September's devastating 921 earthquake. The typhoon damaged temporary housing units still occupied by victims left homeless after the quake.
According to initial tallies, the storm left 309 houses completely destroyed and 1,499 houses partially collapsed. In addition, the typhoon caused losses worth more than NT$4 billion in the agricultural sector.
The president, who had originally been scheduled to return home today, cut short his visit to Chad -- the last leg of his journey -- to take charge of the situation at home in the wake of Typhoon Bilis.
He was severely criticized during his term as Taipei's mayor for failing to return immediately from a vacation in the US after Typhoon Winnie struck Taiwan.
On this trip, Chen kept in close contact with Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮), the premier and other high-ranking officials, and finally decided to return ahead of schedule.
Chen left Taipei on Aug. 13 to start his first overseas visit since taking office on May 20. The journey took him to the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, the Gambia, Burkina Faso and Chad.
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