Hualien Towns Evacuated Under Red Alert for Barrier Lake Breach
A wave of severe torrential downpours has battered Taiwan, leaving at least six people dead, one missing, and causing over US$6 million in agricultural losses. In Hualien, a critical red alert triggered a secondary emergency evacuation for 186 residents living downstream of an unstable barrier lake on the Wanli River.
On Saturday, new alerts came less than a day after evacuated residents were given the go-ahead to return home. First came a yellow alert... then the highest-level red alert. The 186 people who chose to stay in the townships of Fonglin and Wanrong after the initial warnings were then forced to evacuate.
RESIDENT:
"That's fine. It can't be helped. This is what we're facing now. Safety first."
They're moving away from a danger zone... as a barrier lake sits on the verge of overflowing. Authorities say it was formed recently by mountain landslides... just seven kilometers from where a similar lake burst its banks last year -- inundating a nearby town and killing 19 people. Now after days of heavy rain -- this new lake is nearing capacity.
HUANG CHUN-TSE, DIRECTOR, HUALIEN BRANCH FORESTRY AND NATURE CONSERVATION AGENCY:
"Based on today’s predicted rainfall and the water level in the barrier lake on Wanli River chances of it filling up and breaching are low but the walls could collapse from repeated erosion."
Elsewhere... residents have endued days of flooding... In the mountains of Taichung in the central Taiwan... four hikers died after being struck by a rockslide. And in Hsinchu’s farmlands in the north... floodwaters killed two people and left one missing. Now Hsinchu’s county chief is responding to criticism over perceived delays in his decision to suspend work and school.
YANG WEN-KE, HSINCHU COUNTY MAGISTRATE:
"It was a tough decision to make. Had we gone by the rules Hsinchu county wasn’t even close to the benchmark for work and school suspension."
Officials are also reporting widespread crop damage, with estimates already placing losses at around six million US dollars. Ninety-six percent of the damage is concentrated in southern counties like Yunlin. There, farmers are rushing to save their crops—now waterlogged after weather stations recorded record-breaking daily rainfall.
FARMER:
"If the vegetables soak like this until the following day and the water isn’t drained they’ll all die."
With more heavy rain forecast, authorities across Taiwan remain on alert as they monitor unstable slopes and rising water levels. For many residents and farmers, the immediate concern now is simply protecting what remains and staying safe.
