As Typhoon Sura relents, Mayor Chu warns for possible landslides
The New Taipei City Emergency Operation Center held the sixth disaster prevention meeting for Typhoon Sura yesterday in the afternoon. Mayor of New Taipei City, Eric Chu back from his inspection at the banks of Xindian River and Dahan River said his team found all floodplains were flooded, inferring the tremendous amount of accumulated rainfall. The water level at Erchong Floodway in Dahan River was on par with the record left by Typhoon Aere in 2004, and the water level at Xiulang Bridge even surpassed the record of Typhoon Herb in 1996. Although the rain had started to relent, Mayor Chu still warned of possible landslides due to the high water content contained in mountain hillsides.
In addition, Mayor Chu asked the emergency operation team to continue monitoring river levels and flood discharge of dams. If necessary, they may also conduct any road, bridge closures and evacuation.
According to the weather risk management company, affected by the physical terrain, Typhoon Sura has relented to become a mild typhoon. Although the amount of rainfall has decreased, more rain was expected to come at night. The Center for Weather Climate and Disaster Research warned of possible landslides due to continuous rainfall.
Until 15:30 yesterday, the Fire Department reported that Typhoon Sura has caused 2 deaths and injured 9. The Fire Department would like to urge people to heed official government notices as well as typhoon news and refrain from entering any dangerous area.