TAIWAN: Soldiers get ready to dig out bodies at village worst-hit by Typhoon Morakot

Record ID: 573449

  • Title: TAIWAN: Soldiers get ready to dig out bodies at village worst-hit by Typhoon Morakot
  • Date: 21st August 2009
  • Summary: DORMITORY BED VARIOUS
  • Embargoed: 5th September 2009 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Disasters / Accidents / Natural catastrophes
  • Reuters ID: LVA3HXRTBHKHAYVNGU21NIIJRYK
  • Story Text: Hundreds of soldiers gathered at Hsiaolin village to dig out the bodies that were buried by mudslides on Wednesday (August 19), twelve days after Typhoon Morakot lashed Taiwan's mountainous south, killing an estimated 500 people.
    Hsiaolin was the worst-hit village in the region, with 491 people being listed as missing, according to local media reports.
    Relatives performed rituals for the deceased and prayed for their loved ones to have a better life in another world.
    Typhoon Morakot hit the island over a week ago, triggering massive floods and mudslides that wiped out villages, crashed roads, bridges and cut off water and electricity supplies.
    So far, the official death toll stood at 127, but Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou said he expected over 500 people have been killed by the worst typhoon to hit the island in 50 years.
    Soldiers also started to disinfect temporary shelters for the displaced.
    In Cishan, hundreds of evacuees took shelter at a local temple, waiting for the government to tell them when they can return to their homes.
    "We are waiting for the government to quickly re-settle us. If we go back up the mountains ourselves, there is no water, no electricity and the traffic is inconvenient. So we are hoping the government will quickly settle this problem for us," said a villager Yan Tz'u.
    Temporary jobs, mostly manual labour, were provided for those staying at the temple.
    "There is nothing to go back to, what can I do? I still have to look for a job outside. That's the way it is," said evacuee Tu Ch'eni-chu.
    Over 35,000 people have been evacuated to safe places so far, and reconstruction work is expected to take three years, according to government figures.
    So far, more than 60 countries have donated cash and other relief supplies to Taiwan.
    Donors across mainland China have donated T$1.12 billion ($34 million U.S dollars) in cash and will send the money to Taiwan for disaster relief, Chinese state television (CCTV) reported.
    A Chinese cargo ship carrying 100 sets of prefabricated houses arrived in Kaohsiung county on Tuesday (August 18), and another 900 sets will be delivered in the next few days, said CCTV.
    Taiwan's President Ma told a press conference on Tuesday that post-disaster search and rescue work will become a bigger job for Taiwan's military, adding that the government would cut back purchases of U.S. military helicopters to spend T$10 billion on disaster relief equipment.
    He said the overall typhoon damage total will reach as high as T$110 billion, and the typhoon would likely hurt the tech-reliant economy in the third quarter, in line with analysts' expectations.
    Analysts expect GDP to be affected during the period, as farm, tourism and some traditional industries were hit.
    ENDS.
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