President Lai orders repair of broken levees in Hualien within 1 month

Taipei, Sept. 25 (CNA) President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) gave a directive Thursday for the levees in Hualien County to be repaired within a month, following the recent severe storm damage that caused fatal flooding there.

"The central government will spare no effort to support Hualien's disaster relief and recovery efforts," Lai said during a tour of the eastern county to assess the damage from Typhoon Ragasa.

Military personnel have been deployed to Hualien to help clear the flood debris in residents' homes, and, if necessary, heavy equipment and more manpower will be provided, the president said.

Heavy rainfall during the passage of Typhoon Ragasa caused the overflow of a barrier lake on Matai'an Creek in Hualien on Tuesday, leading to severe flooding in Guangfu, Wanrong, and Fenglin townships.

Lai sets repair deadline

Lai said he has issued a directive for the Water Resources Agency to repair the damaged levees within one month, so that further reinforcement and improvements can be made before the rainy season starts next April.

As of 6 p.m. Thursday, 16 deaths had been confirmed as a result of the flooding in Hualien, while 24 people remained missing, according to Hualien County's rescue center.

Prosecutors have launched an investigation into why the deaths occurred despite a mandatory evacuation order that had been issued before the storm, Hsiao Huan-chang (蕭煥章), head of the National Fire Agency, told reporters after a Cabinet meeting on Thursday.

Prosecutors to probe evacuation procedures

His comment followed a statement Wednesday by the Hualien County government, saying that the Ministry of the Interior's "vertical evacuation" guidance -- which advises people to take refuge on the upper floors of their buildings during a flood -- had led many Hualien residents to believe that their homes were safe on Tuesday, and they could not be persuaded to leave until it was too late.

On the question of why most of the deceased were reportedly found on the ground level of their buildings, Hsiao said prosecutors will be investigating whether the proper evacuation procedures were enforced in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Family tragedy in Guangfu

One of the victims was an 84-year-old woman in Guangfu, whose son choked up when he recalled the last moments with his mother.

The man, surnamed Liu (劉), said he and his mother were at home when the floodwaters came rushing into the ground floor of the building, engulfing them in nose-deep water. Liu said he managed to escape, but his mother did not.

He said that his sister, who lived nearby, also died in the floods.

Authorities said the mother's body was later found buried in mud, and they confirmed drowning as the cause of death.

Young girl rescued after day-long search

At 5 p.m. Wednesday, a 6-year-old girl, who was reported missing during the Hualien floods, was rescued by Pingtung County firefighters and reunited with her mother.

She was found standing on an elevated structure inside their one-story home on Fozu Street in Guangfu Township, which had been inundated with floodwaters nearly up to the roof, authorities said, adding that she was uninjured.