Fri, Oct 12, 2007 page3

• Taiwan Quick Take

  • STAFF WRITER, WITH AGENCIES
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  ■ EARTHQUAKES

  Undersea quake jolts nation

  An undersea earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale jolted Taiwan yesterday, the Central Weather Bureau said. There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties, but the quake was felt across the nation. The tremor struck at 11.05am and was centered 7km northeast of Ilan City, the bureau said.

  ■ CHARITY

  Foundation builds school

  The Buddhist Compassionate Relief Tzu Chi Foundation is constructing a secondary school in northern Thailand as part of its ongoing efforts to help people in the region, a foundation spokesman said yesterday. The school is scheduled to be inaugurated in two years, said the spokesman for the charitable organization, which is headquartered in Hualien County. The volunteer-based humanitarian foundation launched an aid program aimed at helping the people of the region in 1994, the spokesman said. Under the program, the foundation has built four Tzu Chi villages to offer agricultural know-how and to take care of those who are unable to make a living, the spokesman said. The foundation has also provided scholarships to disadvantaged children, the spokesman said, adding that it also opened a primary school in the region in May 2005. The school has 275 students, he said.

  ■ AGRICULTURE

  COA purchases rice

  The Council of Agriculture (COA) has started buying unhusked rice damaged by Typhoon Krosa to help ease farmers' financial losses, a COA official said yesterday. Agricultural losses resulting from Krosa, which swept through northern and northeastern Taiwan on Saturday, bringing strong wind and torrential rain, have exceeded NT$3.85 billion (US$117.68 million), the official said, citing the latest statistics released by the COA. Rice and bananas were the two worst-hit crops. Other crops such as grapes, persimmons, ponkan mandarin oranges, guavas, bell fruit and papayas also suffered serious damage, the official said. The typhoon also caused losses to forestry production, damage to fishery and aquaculture facilities, and numerous stock and poultry deaths. Farmers in Miaoli, Taichung, Changhua, Nantou, Yunlin, Chiayi, Tainan, Kaohsiung, Hualien, Taitung and Ilan counties are eligible for both government relief aid and low-interest loans, while farmers in Hsinchu and Pingtung counties can apply for low-interest loans, the official said.

  ■ TRANSPORTATION

  Carriers eye Czech route

  China Airlines (CAL) and EVA Airways -- the nation's two largest carriers -- expressed interest yesterday in offering flights to Prague, capital of the Czech Republic, after Taiwan and the central European country signed an aviation agreement earlier in the day. Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) Director-General Billy Chang (張國政) and his Czech counterpart, Jindrich Ploch, signed the agreement and CAA officials said that although CAL operates cargo flights between Taipei and Prague, it had to apply separately for each individual flight. With the signing of the agreement, the two sides agree to 14 passenger flights per week, with no limit on the number of cargo flights. Passenger and cargo flight services will also be granted the fifth freedom of the air, meaning the right to take on passengers, mail and cargo destined for the territory of another agreeing nation and to put down passengers, mail and cargo coming from any such territory.

  ■ TOURISM

  Gondola to close for repairs

  Taipei's Maokong Gondola system will be shut down from Oct. 22 to Oct. 29 to shorten the cable by 6m to 8m as part of routine maintenance, the Taipei City Government said yesterday. Taipei City Secretariat Deputy Director Yang Hsi-an (楊錫安) said the cable was expected to stretch 0.2 percent to 0.3 percent in the initial stage of operation, and shortening the rope helped maintain its elasticity. French company POMA, the builder of the cable car system, will be responsible for the maintenance procedure, Yang said. Similar gondola systems in other countries, including the Sky Rail in Australia and Medelline in Columbia, also adjusted their cable lengths two to three months after going into operation, he said. The service will resume on Oct. 30.

  ■ HEALTH

  Project aims to aid elders

  Minister of the Interior Lee Yi-yang (李逸洋) announced yesterday that a 10-year project to build a nationwide elder care network would begin no later than the end of this year. "Advances in medical technology are enabling people to live longer. Our job is to make sure that people not only live longer, but also live better in their old age," Lee told the news conference. The 10-year project aims to create at-home or community elder care services geared toward providing the elderly with good care close to home. The project would include sending trained caretakers to assist in elder care at home, creating community daycare centers for the elderly, providing at-home elder-sitting services and financial aid to creating an accessible home, Lee said. Elderly people may choose one or more services depending on their needs, he said.
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