An estimated 1,700 people in rural Kaohsiung County are thought to be stranded after two days of torrential rains washed away a vital road leading into Taoyuan Township (桃源).
The Kaohsiung County Fire Department said residents were in no immediate danger. However, emergency rescue crews airlifted eight people in need of medical attention because of prior conditions at noon yesterday.
Local authorities said plans were also being made to evacuate an estimated 90 to 100 tourists that are also stranded in the area.
PHOTO: CNA
Parts of Provincial Highway 20 have been impassable since Friday after the swelling Laonong River (荖濃溪) overwhelmed temporary bridges erected after Typhoon Morakot last August.
Taking advantage of a brief interruption in the rain yesterday, emergency engineering crews entered the area to reconnect the fallen bridges.
The four unreachable villages in the township are Meishan (梅山), Fusing (復興), Cinhe (勤和) and Lafulan (拉芙蘭).
Officials did not comment on when the roads would be reopened.
The Central Weather Bureau yesterday announced that daytime temperatures are expected to start rising today and stabilize by Tuesday. Nighttime temperatures are still expected to remain low.
The bureau said that record levels of snowfall on Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Yushan (玉山) are also expected to end today with the rising temperatures and a drop in humidity. However, rain is expected in central and northern regions over the next few days.
The announcement signals an end to the cold front that has engulfed the nation and claimed four lives since the start of the Lunar New Year holidays.
On Friday, a middle-aged man died after drinking large amounts of alcohol with a friend in Taichung City. Doctors said the death was due to acute myocardial infarction brought on by heavy drinking and low temperatures.
In related news, the cold weather this year has at least made residents of the Penghu archipelago happy during the Lunar New Year holiday as they have had an abundant seaweed harvest.
Penghu laver, an edible seaweed that is popular and sold at relatively high prices in Taiwan’s retail markets, grows bigger and better in cold weather, islanders said.
Aside from shipping the seaweed to Taiwan, the harvesters have also done brisk business at home on Kupo Island (姑婆嶼) in the northern part of the archipelago.
The island, which is abundant in the high-value laver, is open to the public during the Lunar New Year holiday, and over the past few days, hundreds of islanders and holidaymakers have made trips to Kupo to pick the prized weed.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
Costa Rica sent a group of intelligence officials to Taiwan for a short-term training program, the first time the Central American country has done so since the countries ended official diplomatic relations in 2007, a Costa Rican media outlet reported last week. Five officials from the Costa Rican Directorate of Intelligence and Security last month spent 23 days in Taipei undergoing a series of training sessions focused on national security, La Nacion reported on Friday, quoting unnamed sources. The Costa Rican government has not confirmed the report. The Chinese embassy in Costa Rica protested the news, saying in a statement issued the same
Temperatures in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) climbed past 37°C yesterday, as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued heat alerts for 16 municipalities, warning the public of intense heat expected across Taiwan. The hottest location in Taiwan was in Sindian, where the mercury reached 37.5°C at about 2pm, according to CWA data. Taipei’s Shilin District (士林) recorded a temperature of 37.4°C at noon, Taitung County’s Jinfeng Township (金峰) at 12:50 pm logged a temperature of 37.4°C and Miaoli County’s Toufen Township (頭份) reached 36.7°C at 11:40am, the CWA said. The weather agency yesterday issued a yellow level information notice for Taipei, New
RSS