Thirty-six people, including 13 migrant workers in Taichung, were rescued at the weekend, after they were trapped by river surges caused by heavy rainfall, local authorities said.
The migrant workers were rescued from a sandbar in the Dadu River (大肚溪) in Taichung, where they spent the night while on a fishing trip after encountering the unexpected surge early yesterday, the Taichung City Fire Bureau said.
The bureau dispatched first responders with fire engines and boats after receiving a report about the group being trapped at 5:20am, it said.
Photo copied by Chen Chien-chih, Taipei Times
All 13 workers were brought to safety at 7:13am, it said.
In Hualien County, 23 people also reported being trapped on one side of the Baliwan River (八里灣溪) during a hiking trip on Baliwanshan (八里灣山) at about 5pm on Saturday, an official at the county’s Fire Bureau said yesterday.
The trip to the summit of the 992m mountain, known as Cilangasan to Amis, involves crossing the river several times.
The rescue team delivered food and water using a rope, while waiting for the water level to subside, said Jian Hong-cheng (簡弘丞), head of the Hualien County Fire Department’s search-and-rescue unit.
The 23 hikers returned to safety sometime after 11pm on Saturday, Jian said.
The Central Weather Administration has issued heavy rain alerts since late on Friday, as a rain-bearing weather front passes through Taiwan during the plum rain season from May to June.
The start of the plum rain season also marked the beginning of an about seven-month-long flood season in Taiwan, the Water Resources Agency said.
The Ministry of Finance this afternoon announced the winning numbers for the March-April uniform invoice lottery. The winning number for the NT$10 million (US$318,060) special prize is 19531471, and the winning number for the NT$2 million grand prize is 85941329. Three numbers were drawn for the NT$200,000 first prize: 07225810, 20231230 and 83518781. Those with receipts matching the last seven digits of any of the first-prize numbers will win the NT$40,000 second prize, while those matching the last six digits will win the NT$10,000 third prize. Those whose receipts match the last five digits of the first-prize numbers can claim the NT$4,000 fourth prize,
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