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A decades-old natural dam in eastern Taiwan collapsed after Super Typhoon Ragasa unleashed torrential rains, killing 17 people and leaving at least 152 missing, officials said Wednesday.
The barrier lake in Hualien County, formed by landslides decades ago, burst on Tuesday. The surge of water destroyed a bridge, inundated a nearby town, and left behind thick sludge and mud.
“It was like a volcano erupting…. the muddy floodwaters came roaring straight into the first floor of my house,” said Hsu Cheng-hsiung, 55, a neighbourhood leader in Kuang Fu township.
Lee Kuan-ting, a Hualien County Government spokesperson, initially confirmed 14 deaths and 18 injuries. However, the number hit 17, as at the time of report.
Premier Cho Jung-tai, who visited the disaster zone, pledged government support. “As for the 14 people who lost their lives, we must find out why evacuation orders were not carried out in the affected area, leading to such a tragedy,” he said. “We still have more than a hundred people missing, and this is our greatest concern right now.”
The National Fire Agency said at least 152 people remain missing in Hualien and other parts of Taiwan.
“It was a disaster movie,” said resident Yen Shau, 31. He recalled that “within minutes, the water had risen to halfway up the first floor” of his neighbourhood supermarket.
Yen said he couldn’t sleep through Tuesday night, fearing another wave, and was shovelling mud from his home the next morning. “The mud was just too deep, too deep to dig out,” he added.
Footage released by the fire agency showed flooded streets, half-submerged cars, and uprooted trees. More than 7,600 people have been evacuated across Taiwan due to Typhoon Ragasa.
Taiwan frequently faces tropical storms from July to October. In early July, Typhoon Danas killed two people and injured hundreds as it dumped over 50 centimetres of rain in the south.
