Guangfu Township chief detained incommunicado over barrier lake breach

Taipei, Jan. 15 (CNA) The Hualien District Court on Thursday evening approved the incommunicado detention of Guangfu Township chief Lin Ching-shui (林清水) for his alleged role in the deaths of 19 people in the Matai'an Creek barrier lake breach.

Lin is suspected of offenses including negligent manslaughter and falsely reporting evacuation figures around the time the barrier lake overflowed on Sept. 23, 2025.

Prosecutors on Wednesday questioned Lin and three other township office employees suspected of the same offenses.

The three officials were released on bail and put on digital surveillance.

According to prosecutors, the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency issued a yellow alert calling for preventive evacuation at 11 a.m. on Sept. 21 and a red alert for mandatory evacuation at 7 a.m. on Sept. 22.

However, Lin and the three officials did not actively evacuate residents as required under relevant regulations, which resulted in a "serious disaster situation," prosecutors said.

Prosecutors allege that the four later submitted falsified evacuation headcount reports to the Hualien County Government's Department of Civil Affairs.