Emergency responders were still working late into the night last night after implementing rerouting measures following a landslide near Keelung’s seaside Chaojing Park (潮境公園) yesterday afternoon that buried vehicles and left four people injured.
Local authorities said after a thorough search by rescue units with drones and sniffer dogs, they had accounted for everyone and believed nobody was trapped in the site strewn with giant boulders and debris from a collapsed hill above.
The landslide occurred at about 2:30pm on Beining Road (北寧路) adjacent to Chaojing Park and partially buried nine vehicles and trucks, as well as one scooter.
Photo: Tsai Yun-jung, Taipei Times
Highway Bureau officials said that the landslide was most likely the result of earthquakes in Hualien County and water saturation from rainfall in the past few days.
They estimated that work crews would need more than a week to clear the debris and reopen the road to traffic.
With Chaojing Park being a popular spot for sightseeing, the landslide was recorded by vehicle camcorders from several angles.
Photo courtesy of the Keelung Fire Bureau via CNA
First trees were seen collapsing among earth and rock debris, then large boulders fell and covered a section of road, pushing vehicles out of the way.
Two drivers in their 40s in separate vehicles were initially trapped when their cars were hit by the landslide. Pedestrians and firefighters were able to extricate them. Both remained conscious and were taken to hospital for treatment. Neither was in a life-threatening condition.
Meanwhile a driver surnamed Teng (鄧) and his wife sustained minor injuries as the couple had parked in a parking lot and were enjoying the view of the seashore.
“At first we noticed some pebbles falling from the hill, but did not think it would be anything serious... Then a few minutes later, we heard very loud banging, and were very frightened, as our car got pushed around by the falling rocks and debris,” Teng told reporters.
“The car’s rear got smashed up, and the doors were jammed... so we were scared about being trapped inside and could not get out. Fortunately, some pedestrians in the area came over to assist us and got us out of the car,” he said.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS