A hiker who made cellphone contact with rescuers 6 days ago after being missing 31 days, was finally rescued from a remote mountain ridge in Hualian County this morning. He had been without food for 8 days. See previous article: Hiker Makes Contact After 31 Days Missing The 29 year old hiker, Lee Minghan (李明翰) set off on a cross-island solo hike May 13. Lee’s last contact with his family by phone was made on May 15. On May 20,
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A badly decomposed corpse found in the Matsu Islands is believed to belong to an 85 year old woman named Tang, who fell into flood waters in a mountainous area near Keelung City June 2. Coast Guard officers received a report from fishermen who were gathering shellfish when they stumbled across human remains on the shore of Nangan, the southern main island of the Matsu group, at around noon yesterday. Although the corpse was in such an advanced state of
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Ministry of Health and Welfare officials today released national mortality statistics for 2016, and noted that on average one person died every 3 minutes and 3 seconds, 11 seconds faster than the previous year. The statistical report revealed that a total of 172, 418 people died in Taiwan last year. The leading cause of death was cancer, which took a life every 11 minutes, 2 seconds, 11 seconds faster than the previous year. Cancer accounted for 27.7% of deaths, with
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Firefighters and police were involved in a risky rescue in Tainan City yesterday, when a suicidal woman climbed over a safety barrier and sat on a narrow ledge on the roof of a 24-story building. Ms Lee, 22, held on to a steel post and lowered herself off the ledge. Officers held her until a firefighter used rappelling equipment to suspend himself below the woman. The firefighter then pushed her back up to the ledge. Ms Lee reportedly had become
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More than 3,000 people were evacuated from landslide and flood-prone districts in Taiwan today as a rainy season meiyu (plum rain) front continued to inundate the island Saturday, June 17. In the mountainous Taoyuan District in Kaohsiung County more than 1,500 residents were evacuated as a precaution after 200mm fell overnight and forecasters predicted the rain to intensify during the day. Soldiers assisted with the evacuation. More people were evacuated after Central Weather Bureau forecasters said the rain would shift
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Forensics officers from Chiayi District Prosecutor’s Office were sent to an elementary school in the town of Putai to recover and examine skeletal remains suspected to belong to a school worker who went missing 10 years ago. The human bones, skull, clothing, a quilt, and an old cellphone, were found in the corner of a concrete drainage gutter on the roof of Yongan Elementary School yesterday afternoon, when workers were sent to clear drains after the roof became flooded during
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A ground rescue team set out on foot this morning in an attempt to reach a hiker stranded on a ridge in Taiwan’s Central Mountain Range. It is expected they will take 5 days to reach the man. Mr Lee, 29, went missing after setting out on a hike May 13 [see previous article], but managed to make contact with rescue services by cellphone yesterday after crawling to the top of a 2,400 meter high ridge. Lee said that had
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Updated 15:32 June 14 A man who set out on a planned 15 day cross-island hike May 13 made contact by cellphone this morning. Although unable to specify his exact location, he identified a ridge north of Dagui Mountain. Rescuers are using the phone signal to attempt to pinpoint his position. The 29 year-old New Taipei City resident surnamed Lee departed from Nantou May 13, expecting to reach Hualian May 28. His last phone contact was May 15. Lee’s family
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A man riding a scooter was killed in Banciao District of New Taipei City after being hit by a Mercedes Benz that ran a red light in the early hours of the morning, Wednesday June 14. The victim was thrown 30 meters from the point of impact, and his leg was severed below the knee. However, police and ambulance officers were unable to locate the missing limb. The 55 year-old scooter rider was pronounced dead at the hospital. Several hours
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Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau issued heavy to extremely heavy rain warnings covering most of Taiwan this evening as a “meiyu front” approaches. Three counties on the east coast have been spared the warning, although Taitung County has been issued a strong wind advisory. Coastal communities from New Taipei City to Chiayi County on the west coast, along with Kinmen, Matsu, and Penghu Islands have also been issued with strong wind advisories. The Ministry of Defense is preparing inflatable boats, rescue
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Two men and one woman were sent to hospital for treatment after one of the men went berserk with a knife during a road rage incident in Taipei City’s Xinyi District this morning, June 13. The driver of an Infiniti, 61 year-old Mr Ren, entered Zhongpo Road from a side-street, forcing 45 year-old Mr Zhou, who was driving a Mercedes Benz, to change lanes to avoid a collision. The two drivers stopped next to each other at a red light
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