Regional power outages yesterday morning snarled traffic as emergency workers responded to calls for rescue, including those trapped in elevators.
TV footage showed police officers directing vehicles as traffic lights failed and some shops were forced to stay closed due to the lack of power.
The owner of a bakery in Yilan County’s Dongshan Township (冬山) said that he had to discard many loaves of bread and cakes, as the blackout occurred as he was baking, disrupting the process.
Photo courtesy of the Taoyuan Fire Department via CNA
In Keelung, some seafood sellers said they had rushed to place crabs, shrimp and other seafood in cages and then in the waters nearby to prevent them from dying, while others said they used generators to circulate water, which kept their sea catch alive.
The Taipei Department of Economic Development said that at 1pm yesterday, 429,436 households were affected by the blackout, while 239 traffic signals were out and 49 people needed to be freed from elevators.
The Taoyuan Fire Department said that 14 people were reported trapped in elevators.
In Kaohsiung, 1.86 million households were affected by the blackout, 79 people were trapped in elevators, and the city’s MRT and light rail systems were suspended, Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said.
The Tainan Fire Department reported 24 people trapped in elevators, with firefighters having to climb 23 floors to free one person.
In New Taipei City, 891,985 households were affected by the power outage as of 9:16am yesterday, the city’s Economic Development Department said.
The power went out just as the string orchestra of Cheng-Gong Junior High School in Hsinchu County played the first note of their performance in the regional finals of a national student music competition.
The 31 students were unfazed and finished their performance on a pitch-black stage, earning applause from the judges.
Additional reporting by Lu Hsiu-hsien, Yang Hsin-hui, Liao Hsueh-ju and AFP
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