Taiwan helicopters pluck quake-stranded tourists to safety

HUALIEN - Taiwan rescue helicopters flew sorties on April 6 to pluck tourists to safety after a massive earthquake cut off roads and blocked tunnels, leaving hundreds stranded for days in the mountains.

At least 13 people were killed and more than 1,100 injured in the 7.4-magnitude quake that struck the island on April 3, with strict building codes and widespread disaster readiness credited with averting an even bigger catastrophe.

The quake caused massive landslides that blocked tunnels and long stretches of winding road that cut across the island from east to west, as well as a coastal highway from north to south carved out of steep cliffs.

The authorities raised the death toll from 10 on April 6, after confirming they had recovered bodies they first located on a hiking trail on April 5.

At least six people remain unaccounted for.

Hualien, the epicentre around 100km south of the capital Taipei, has been roiled by more than 300 aftershocks, including a 5.2-magnitude aftershock on the morning of April 6.

Helicopters from the National Airborne Service Corps were flying into cut-off areas near the scenic Taroko National Park to pluck stranded visitors to safety.

An AFP staff member saw one flight ferry 12 people to safety, and a second with 16.

Smiles after rescue

“Priority was given to the elderly, the weak, women, children, and people with chronic diseases,” said Taiwan news website ET Today.

“Although everyone was tired after coming down the mountain, they all still showed smiles.”

One airlift brought people from the luxury Silks Place hotel, where more than 400 tourists and staff had been stranded.

“The subsequent aftershocks were very large and serious,” a pastor identified only as Zhou told local media.

“I felt very nervous when I was sleeping, but with God’s blessing I was not afraid.”

Rescuers also airdropped boxes of food and supplies to a group of students, teachers and residents at an inaccessible elementary school.

Elsewhere, engineers were working around the clock to clear massive boulders from roads and tunnel entrances.

“Rescuers are not giving up,” said Taiwan’s Vice-President-elect Hsiao Bi-khim on April 5, calling them the “true heroes of a resilient Taiwan”.

The quake on April 3 was the most serious in Taiwan since one of a magnitude of 7.6 hit the island in 1999.

The death toll then was far higher – with 2,400 people killed in the deadliest natural disaster in the island’s history.

Stricter regulations – including enhanced seismic requirements in its building codes – and widespread public disaster awareness appear to have staved off a more serious catastrophe this time around.

A preliminary report by the National Centre for Research on Earthquake Engineering, released on April 5, said 84 buildings had been “severely damaged” by the quake – mostly in Hualien county. AFP