Taiwan Still Reeling From Typhoon Morakot

Typhoon 17 comments

I feel bad because here in the north of Taiwan, we hardly felt anything.  The forecasts were for the north part of the island to feel the worst effects and when the typhoon appeared to be weak and disorganized, several of us in the north thought it was over.  It wasn’t until the news began coming in that we found out south Taiwan had suffered a major disaster.

Here is the reason why this typhoon was so devastating to south Taiwan:

Friday

Saturday

Sunday 2009-08-09_1930

These are rainfall charts.  The top, middle and bottom are Friday, Saturday and Sunday, respectively.  This is the kind of rainfall that one would expect for an entire year and not over a weekend!  Much of Taiwan has been literally washed away.  Here are some top headlines in Taiwan:

Village Chief swept away while trying to operate a water gate.
Kaohsiung has 130,000 t0ns of trash.
10,000 pigs and chickens killed.
682 schools damaged by typhoon.
51 Taidong homes disappear into Pacific.
Hundreds unaccounted for in Kaohsiung village.
7 cars crash into swollen Choushui river.

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17 comments

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  3. Yeah, we also thought it was over Saturday and then started seeing the devastation. Its really sad. Friday was a holiday in Taipei because they thought it would be bad. There was a bit of wind around midnight and some rain but nothing major. We really empathize with those people.

    Thanks for the coverage and keeping people informed. Up here in the north there is too much ignorance regarding the devastation of typhoons (especially with people in Taipei) many of whom were hoping for a typhoon holiday.
    .-= durbanbay´s last blog ..Boracay Beach 02: The People =-.

    1. durbanbay, i know what you mean. for us in the north it was just another inconvenience and we were all set to call it over when the news began to pour in about the situation in south Taiwan. i feel totally helpless. thanks for your comments.

  4. Even tho those maps show rainfall for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday… I’m trying to picture in my mind what a map with the TOTAL rainfall for the storm would be. I see some areas that look like they were in the 300mm areas each day which would be 900mm of rain. If my math to convert from mm to inhces is correct… thats about 35 inches of rain. Now I see why they’ve been saying on the news there that its like the worse flooding in Taiwan in like 50 or 60 years.

    Now… isn’t like towards the middle of Taiwan a mountainous area??? I would guess that some of the worse flooding would be on either side of those mountains. Not only do they have to deal with their own rainfall… but with the water rushing down the sides of the mountains too.

    I can only imagine how parts of Taiwan look from this. I mean… when parts of this country gets a lot of rain and rivers overfloow and flood wide areas… its usually not from nearly as much rain as Taiwan just got.
    .-= mike01905´s last blog ..Jim Rice Day at Fenway Park =-.

    1. Mike, many of those places had more than 2,000 mm of rain! that’s taller than i am! you are correct that the central portion of Taiwan is mountainous. our highest mountain, Yu-shan is higher than Japan’s Mt. Fugi, and is #27 on Wikipedia’s list of peaks: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_peaks_by_prominence so all that water that fell on the mountains came running down into the plains areas. it’s a huge mess in some areas, and many ports are clogged up with debris.

  5. MJ, here in Thailand many people are praying for the folks of Taiwan and the families who have lost their homes and lives , and Ciejay and me know you are sad m but we are glad you are ok . Take care and know in your hearts that we are thinking about and praying for you. Malcolm
    .-= Malcolm´s last blog ..LONG LIVE THE QUEEN and HAPPY MOM’S DAY =-.

    1. thank you Malcolm. we got it bad in the southern part of the island. we live in north Taiwan and the typhoon wasn’t much of a threat to us. thanks for your prayers and concern.

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  7. Is there any way to help the affected people? Like a reputable organization to donate money to?

  8. Wow, it is incredible to think that Taiwan has totaled the expected amount in a YEAR. Here in the U.S., we are thinking about all the victims and families affected by this natural disaster during this difficult time.

    GlobalGiving.com, the internationally recognized marketplace for philanthropy that connects individual donors to the causes they care most about, is also providing immediate assistance of Typhoon Morakot in Taiwan.

    Please donate at: http://www.globalgiving.com/projects/taiwan-typhoon-relief-and-assistance-fund/.

    We hope for the best as Taiwan continues to move forward and will keep you in our thoughts.
    .-= Jenna´s last blog ..Provide Vegetable Gardens for Families in Brazil: "Project Update" =-.

  9. MJ, I am glad to hear you and Hui Chen are okay, but am saddened for teh rest of Taiwan that has really copped a flogging. These things pull people together and usually bring the best out of everybody, I hope that is the case and people can get back to normal life as soon as possible.

    Take care mate
    .-= Brunty´s last blog ..Cheer Leading, Isaan Thailand. =-.

    1. Brunty, this has been an eye-opening experience, putting it mildly. this disaster has made it very clear that anything can happen at any time. food for thought. thanks Brunty.

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