Thu, Sep 23, 1999 page3

• Out of the ruins of Taichung County emerges a story of hope and courage

  DEATH TOLL RISES As rescue teams and relief efforts continued around the clock in Taichung County, the death toll climbed to almost 1,000, with 870 missing; but one story of survival raised everyone's spirits

  • By Lin Chieh-yu / STAFF REPORTER
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  As relief efforts continued yesterday in Taichung County, one inspirational story emerged, with rescue efforts in Fengyuan paying off for a lucky man who had been trapped inside the wreckage of a building.

  Lin Yu-lung (林佑龍), a 33-year-old resident, was pulled from a collapsed building in Fengyuan yesterday afternoon.

  When rescued, Lin told officials that after finding himself trapped in the rubble, he crawled around a bit and found some bottles of champagne, coffeemate and a cellphone. He used the mobile phone to call relatives and survived by drinking champagne and eating the coffeemate, he said.

  

  A street scene in Puli in Nantou County yesterday, following the massive earthquake early Tuesday morning which registered 7.3 on the Richter scale. Rescue teams from overseas joined units from Taiwan searching for people still trapped in the rubble of collapsed buildings in Taichung County, which along with Nantou County, was especially hard-hit by the killer quake.

  PHOTO: AFP

  However, Lin's story was overshadowed by bleaker news.

  Despite efforts by local authorities, soldiers and rescue teams from Taiwan and abroad, casualties in Taichung County yesterday reached nearly 1,000 in the wake of Tuesday's earthquake, police said.

  As rescue work continued yesterday, President Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) flew by helicopter to a mountainous area of the county, including Tungshih (東勢), with high-ranking military officers yesterday afternoon to inspect disaster relief operations.

  Around 60,000 people in Tungshih -- which suffered the most casualties in the county -- were forced to camp out on streets because almost 65 percent of the homes there were crushed, officials at the Rescue and Prevention Center said.

  "The death toll is around 430 in Tungshih. The casualties and damages are more serious than we imaged," Liao Yuan-lai (廖永來), the Taichung County commissioner, said.

  "We need volunteers to join the rescue missions. But the hard-hit places are still dangerous and the roads are not repaired completely. People should not go there to look for their relatives. That will only obstruct the rescue mission," Liao said.

  Some local residents who met with Lee became visibly angry, letting off steam and expressing their strong personal emotions.

  Rescue teams from Russia and Singapore arrived in Taichung County yesterday and began work immediately.

  The Singapore team arrived at Chingchuangkung air force base (清泉崗) and joined rescue efforts in Fengyuan (豐原).

  The earthquake turned a mountain ridge in the county into a twisted mass of roads, bridges and farms near the towns of Tongshih, Shihkung (石岡) and Hsinshe (新社).

  According to a report from the Taichung County Disaster Rescue and Prevention Center, there were 982 dead, 870 missing and 2,104 injured, as of 3pm yesterday.

  In addition, the earthquake destroyed or partially-destroyed some 500 buildings in the county.

  The destruction is everywhere, according to rescue teams that went to Tungshih, Shikang, Hsinshe and Hoping (和平).

  Major bridges in the county, such as Wuhsi bridge, Tungfong bridge and Yichiang bridge are either collapsed or seriously damaged. Kingbow Chen (陳雨鑫), deputy commissioner of Taichung County, and Yen Ching-biao (顏清標), County Council Speaker, viewed the damage from a helicopter yesterday afternoon and saw roads that were severely damaged in Hoping Township (和平鄉).

  Chen said repair work could take two years.

  In Hsinshe, more than 100 families remain stranded.

  Rescue efforts are continuing in Tungshih. At Tungshih Dynasty (東勢王朝), one person was rescued yesterday.

  Premier Vincent Siew ordered that all documents concerning construction work at Tungshih Dynasty and Dali Dynasty (大里王朝) to be checked to see if they were jerrybuilt. Some 45 people were reported dead in the area.

  In Tali, the Singaporean rescue team found three people buried at Dali Golden Paris (大里金巴黎), but one person died on the way to the hospital. It is estimated that there are more than 20 people still buried there.

  A Russian rescue team, composed of 79 people, arrived at the site yesterday afternooon.

  Air supply drops are set to begin today in the mountain areas of the county, including Hsinshe, Hoping and other areas hit hard by the earthquake.
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