Department of Information and Tourism, Taipei City Government

Taipei City Government dispatched the fifth group of disaster relief task force to Pingtung County on August 12. Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin encouraged the team members to do their best to support rescue operations, helping typhoon victims to rebuild their lost homes.

Hau said he will visit the relief staffs workers at the frontier in the disaster areas as soon as he has the chance.

According to Hau, the City has assigned five teams of rescue workers to the disaster areas between August 8 and August 12. The teams, comprising 431 individuals, are a part of the nationwide relief and rescue operations. In addition to the personnel, the City also provided a number of rescue equipments and facilities, including 153 vehicles, 33 speedboats, 10 rubber rafts, and 26 drainage pumps. As of August 12, a total of 605 individuals were rescued from their devastated houses by the City’s teams.

Taking part in the emergency rescue operations at Linbian Township of Pingtung County, Director Sun Ching-chuan of Daan District indicated that the floodwater has not subsided as of nightfall on August 12. He also reported that there are people showing symptoms of diarrhea and skin diseases due to deteriorating sanitation conditions.

Sun remarked that the rescue team has been able to clear out major traffic arteries by draining the water and removing the mud, allowing the delivery of supplies to the residents. To prevent conditions from exacerbating, healthcare teams will also set up field hospitals to offer medical assistances.