Under instructions from President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), the military yesterday vowed to clean up fallen trees and debris left by Typhoon Bilis before the public returns to work today.
In a long-distance telephone call with Chen yesterday morning, General Tang Yao-ming (
Tang received a phone call from Chen at 8:50am in his office, according to Major General Kung Fan-ding (
"Tang told Chen that the armed forces will take the initiative to give assistance to all civilians in need. All units have the autonomy to take any action which they think necessary for the occasion," Kung quoted Tang as saying.
"Our primary objective is to restore the look of Taipei before the public returns to work [this morning]," Kung said.
By 7pm yesterday, the military had mobilized roughly 15,000 personnel and nearly 500 vehicles for the post-typhoon clean-up effort in different parts of the country.
Meanwhile, Kung said the armed forces sustained minor property damage from the typhoon.
Yesterday was the 42nd anniversary of the Aug. 23 artillery shelling on Kinmen islands by China in 1958. Commemorative events were cancelled because of the typhoon.
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