Taroko National Park closes due to barrier lake overflow alert

Taipei, Oct. 17 (CNA) The Taroko National Park Administration announced on Friday evening that it had closed the entire park -- one of the top natural scenic spots in Taiwan -- to the public and urged all residents in mountainous areas to evacuate immediately, following an earlier warning that a roadside barrier lake could overflow.

The office described the "emergency closure" as a necessary measure after a red alert was issued earlier Friday for a roadside barrier lake near the Swallow Grotto Trail (燕子口步道) in the park.

The alert prompted the evacuation of more than 900 residents and the closure of part of the Central Cross-Island Highway, known as Provincial Highway No. 8.

The lake and landslide dam formed on the Liwu River are located near the 175.5 kilometer-mark of the highway, outside the west entrance of Jin Heng Tunnel, according to the Highway Bureau's Eastern Region Branch Office.

The top of the dam sits higher than the highway surface and a breach of the dam could cause the river to flow into the tunnel, with the water exiting from the tunnel's eastern opening and flowing into the Ludan River before rejoining the Liwu River, said Huang Chun-tse (黃群策), director-general of the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency's Hualien Office.

The water is expected to overflow onto the highway before 10 p.m. Friday, Huang said, adding that water levels can be monitored via the highway bureau's surveillance system.

The section of the highway between the entrance of Taroko National Park and Tianxiang was closed from 6 p.m. Friday as a preemptive measure.

Local authorities earlier Friday evening evacuated a total of 384 people in 120 households from Fushih Village and 564 people in 179 households from Xiulin Village, both in Xiulin Township, as well as 14 workers at the Liwu Power Plant downstream.