Lin Hong-ching (
Stay inside their Mazda, where they had been waiting for the light to change at the intersection of Hsinyi and Sungchih Roads, or make a break for it.
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
"We were struggling to decide whether or not to leave," the 29-year-old Lin said. "Bricks kept falling, so we decided to stay put."
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
The couple survived, but just barely.
Yesterday's quake, which measured 6.8 on the Richter scale, shook loose two massive construction cranes perched atop the 56th floor of what is to be a 101-story skyscraper, the Taipei Financial Center.
PHOTOS: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
The cranes plummeted to the ground below, smashing into several cars -- including Lin and Chu's.
But while the couple survived with barely a scratch, the taxi cab just one car ahead of them didn't appear so lucky.
"When I saw the taxi get hit, I knew right away he was killed," Lin said.
The cab driver made it through, though he was seriously hurt. According to police reports, an officer pulled Lu Qiou-long (盧秋隆) from his crushed cab and the driver was taken to Taipei Medical University Hospital.
Lu's condition was unknown as of press time yesterday.
Five construction workers were not so fortunate. They were building what is expected to be the world's tallest skyscraper when they died yesterday. One of the workers was operating a crane when the quake struck at 2:52pm.
Lin said he saw at least one construction worker fall from the building.
That worker was believed to be Chen Jin-shuei (陳錦水), who was on the 48th or 49th floor and struck by one of the cranes as it fell.
Chen showed no signs of life when he was taken to the hospital. Doctors at Taipei Medical University were unable to save him.
Chen was one among 20 construction workers and passers-by at the site of the Taipei Financial Center that were taken to Taipei Medical University.
Government officials yesterday ordered construction on the 101-story building stopped, pending further safety checks.
Financial backers of the building said yesterday's quake didn't harm the skyscraper's structure and work would resume after safety inspections are performed.
The skyscraper is being built by the China Development Financial Holding Corp, the Koo's Group, the Linden Group, Shinkong Group and Hung Kuo Group.
Elsewhere in Taipei, a four-story apartment building on Chengte Road partially collapsed, leaning dangerously toward the street.
Seven residents were trapped and were quickly rescued. They were taken to Mackay Memorial Hospital and their injuries weren't said to be serious.
On the first floor of the building is a motor repair shop. The four-story building will be completely torn down within three days.
In Taipei County, reports said that more than 100 residents whose houses were declared too dangerous to live in after the quake were evacuated to a temporary shelter.
In all, more than 220 people nationwide reported injuries, most of them minor, according to the Cabinet.
The Central Weather Bureau said the quake's epicenter was located 44.3km east of Hualien City and 9.6km below the surface.
In Taipei the temblor registered 5 on the Richter scale. In Taichung it was 3, Chiayi 4, Taitung 3 and Tainan 2.
Most of the damage was limited to the Taipei metropolitan area. Nantou County -- which bore the brunt of the 921 earthquake in 1999, in which nearly 2,400 people died -- was spared.
Bricks falling onto the Central Cross-Island Highway hurt an 8-year old child, who was sitting in a car with his parents. The child's parents took him to the Tz'u Chi Buddhist General Hospital, where he was listed in serious condition last night.
The Su-hwa Highway connecting Suao and Hualien was closed yesterday afternoon due to falling bricks.
Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
The city government's rescue center said the MRT resumed service at 5pm yesterday, but the Mucha line between Linkuang Station and Chungshan Junior High School Station would remain down until this morning.
In addition, the rescue center urged Taipei motorists not to illegally park on overpasses or expressways.
President Chen Shui-bian (
He instructed Premier Yu Shyi-kun to lead the rescue operations.
"I hope that everybody is safe with their family members at home," Chen said.
Yu said that everything was under control and the government would keep the public up to date on rescue efforts.
"I'm sorry for this natural disaster, which we could not avoid," Yu said. "I'm pretty glad that our rescue crews could react quickly, even though the earthquake occurred during a weekend.
"The government will continue working hard and do whatever it takes to reduce the damage of a natural disaster like this in the future."
The Cabinet-level Council of Agriculture said the quake didn't do much damage to the nation's crops, but an emergency center was on stand-by if necessary.
Admiral Li Chieh (李傑), chief of the general staff, said 230 soldiers from the military police were ready to join rescue efforts if needed.
A signaling system malfunction disrupted high-speed rail (HSR) services beginning at 8am today, with trains temporarily reduced to three northbound and three southbound trains per hour as authorities conduct inspections. The malfunction occurred on a section of track in Miaoli County during pre-operation checks early this morning, forcing northbound and southbound trains to use a single track, the HSR operator said. The regular schedule has been replaced with three hourly trains offering only nonreserved seating in each direction, stopping at every station, it said, adding that business class cars would still have reserved seating. Departures from terminal stations are scheduled at the top
Taiwan is still in the process of assessing the possibility of recruiting workers from Eswatini, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, adding that its goal is to help Eswatini upgrade its vocational training centers. If there are plans to recruit workers from Eswatini, safeguarding national security, protecting public health and ensuring the employment rights of Taiwanese would be prerequisites, Department of West Asian and African Affairs Director-General Yen Chia-liang (顏嘉良) told a news conference. Key considerations would also include filling labor shortages in specific industries, and fostering bilateral professional and technical exchanges, he said. Yen was asked about the progress of labor
VERBOSE VESSELS: A CGA cutter and a China Coast Guard exchanged verbal barbs for more than a day in Taiwanese-controlled waters before the Chinese vessel left The Taiwanese and Chinese coast guards had a standoff near the strategically located Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the north of the South China Sea, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said yesterday. The two sides engaged in intense radio exchanges over sovereignty claims during the 33-hour standoff. China Coast Guard vessel 3501 eventually left the restricted waters, 26.6 nautical miles (49.2km) west of the Pratas Islands, at 5pm yesterday, the CGA said. Lying approximately between southern Taiwan and Hong Kong, the Taiwan-controlled Pratas are seen by some security experts as vulnerable to Chinese attack due to their distance — more than
WARNING: China should stop engaging in actions that undermine regional peace and stability, as it would only build resentment among people across the Strait, the CGA said China has deployed more than 100 navy, coast guard and other vessels in waters from the Yellow Sea to the South China Sea and the western Pacific since US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) met in Beijing, National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said yesterday. “In this part of the world, #China is the one & only PROBLEM wrecking the #StatusQuo & threatening regional peace & stability,” Wu wrote on X. In a separate post, he said Beijing was coercing Taiwan’s maritime domain, calling it illegal and provocative, after the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) expelled a
RSS