A broken water pipe created a huge flood of mud that damaged roughly 30 houses in Hualien early yesterday.
No one was injured in the accident which occurred at roughly 3am, jolting residents of Tachen Second Village out of their beds.
"The 400mm-diameter plastic water pipe broke probably because it was old and in need of repair," said Liu Tao-kuang (
The pipe runs alongside Meilun Hill. The Tachen Second Village is located at the foot of the hill.
Water from the broken pipe carried with it a great deal of mud down the hill's slope and into the village. Damage was exacerbated by the fact that the floors of some homes in the village are lower than street level.
In some parts of the village, the mud was knee-deep.
"The mud left in my house is so thick that I could grow vegetables there," one villager complained.
Local residents said they had phoned the water corporation immediately after the break, but no one was there to answer the emergency call.
It was not until 5am that company officials shut off the pipe.
Liu said the residents had phoned an office that is staffed only during business hours. He said the company's night-shift staff were only informed of the broken pipe after a policemen reported the matter to them.
Liu said the broken pipe supplies water to other residential areas and the Meilun Industrial Park. The accident had left roughly 8,000 households and factories without water.
The water company had repaired the pipe and restored water services by noon yesterday, community leader Yen Chun-yu (
Soldiers from nearby bases were mobilized to assist in clean-up efforts yesterday.
Yen said residents of the affected area would meet with representatives of the water company to discuss compensation.
Liu said a similar break occurred ten years ago at the same section of the pipe.
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