Cold weather leaves possibly 15 dead; to last until tomorrow

At least 15 people were feared dead from the cold yesterday in Taipei alone, and 385 people -- most of them elderly -- were sent to hospitals yesterday according to the Taipei City fire department.

The cold snap, which capped mountains with snow and cast a chill over cities and towns, will continue through tomorrow, according to a forecast yesterday from the Central Weather Bureau (CWB).

Most parts of Taiwan, including its warmer south, will be in the grips of the cold front until tomorrow, the CWB said.

"The temperature could drop as low as 5?C in certain low-lying areas in Taiwan's northern and central region.

Even Taiwan's southern point Hengchun (恆春) will see temperatures of 10?C in the early morning," said CWB forecaster Wang Yao-hua (王耀華).

The CWB expects temperatures to climb back up early next week.

The prolonged cold snap has brought rare March snow and sleet to some of Taiwan's high mountains.

There was up to 1.6m of snow in Yu Mountain and 55cm of snow in Hohuan Mountain. Shorter mountains like Taiping Mountain (太平山) in Ilan County and Alishan (阿里山) in Chiayi experienced snowfalls up to 20cm.

The Taipei City Government has provided free shelters to the homeless to help them ride out the cold snap.

Wanhua Community Center and two hostels are open to accommodate as many as 120 homeless.