TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) responded to the disaster caused by the downpour on Thursday (July 11), announcing a significant investment to enhance the city's drainage capacity.
Heavy rain lashed Xinyi District (信義區) and Nangang District (南港區) in Taipei City (台北市) a day earlier, causing severe flooding in multiple areas.
Chiang stated that since October 2023, the city has spent billions of dollars to increase the drainage system's capacity from 78.8 mm per hour to 88.8 mm per hour.
He revealed that by 7 p.m. Wednesday, authorities had received 64 reports of rain-related incidents.
In response to the downpour, the city government established a Level 2 Emergency Response Center at 2:06 p.m. Wednesday. Chiang noted that this center included the Research, Development, and Evaluation Commission (RDEC), the Fire Department, the Police Department, and the Public Works Department.
The Taipei mayor attributed the severe flooding to extreme weather conditions that likely exceeded the current drainage capacity. He emphasized that substantial investment is necessary, and urged residents to remain vigilant during the rainy season and to have disaster prevention awareness.