The government and various civic groups rushed to aid disaster victims as torrential rains left in the wake of Typhoon Mindulle continued to cause floods and landslides in central Taiwan yesterday.
According to the National Disaster Relief Center, the typhoon death toll reached 18. The four new fatalities were a man initially thought missing whose body was found in Penghu, and three victims of a mudslide in Tungshih, Taichung County.
More than 1,000 people were thought to be stranded by flood-waters and storm damage in Tai-chung County. Charities worked with local governments to bring aid to Taichung and Yunlin counties, providing extra manpower and supplies as rescue workers sought to reach those in need.
Taiwan Red Cross representatives said that the organization had over 10,000 volunteers, with many providing disaster relief and others in reserve, and was operating relief centers in Taichung, Taitung and Yunlin counties.
Representatives of World Vision, a Christian charity group, in Nantou and Taichung counties said they also were mobilizing to deal with the current disaster.
"A lot of Aboriginal communities have been stranded by the floods since the road situation is really bad," said World Vision's central Taiwan disaster relief head Chuan Kuo-chen (
World Vision workers said the group was offering relief aid. Both groups are calling for the public to donate money, nonperishable foods and warm clothing. To learn about or contribute to the typhoon aid efforts, call the Red Cross at (02) 2362-8232 or World Vision at (02) 2585-6300.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
RSS