Taiwan Earthquake

Paper lanterns celebrating the Chinese New Year dot Yongda Road, but there is no 

holiday spirit. 

This is the street in Tainan, Taiwan, where the Weiguan Jinlong high-rise building 

collapsed in a magnitude-6.4 earthquake that rocked the region on Saturday. 

The high-rise is where a majority Of the 38 earthquake deaths have been recorded. 

At least 24 people were killed in the building collapse, and efforts continue to find 

another 120 people who are missing, according to the latest government figures. 

The grounds around the collapsed building are crowded with emergency responders and 

volunteers. 

Huang Zhijie, a representative Of Lions Club International, said volunteers are handing 

out food, snacks, hot beverages, clothing and blankets. Two of the volunteers from his 

organization have relatives who are missing in the rubble, Huang said. They continue to 

cook meals even as they wait for news of their loved ones. 

A nearby izakaya a kind Of pub has been converted to a makeshift meeting hub and 

resting place for rescuers. Restaurants and hotels are opening their doors and offering 

food or shelter to victims or their families. 

The Taiwanese government has ordered an investigation into the building's collapse, as 

images emerged showing tin cans built into the walls of the toppled complex. 

Emergency workers came across the tin cans during the rescue operation, Taiwan's state- 

owned Central News Agency reported.tll They appear to have been used as construction 

fillers in beams. 

Taiwan's interior minister and Other officials said they would open an investigation into 

the building's collapse when the rescue operation ends, according to CNA. Tainan Mayor 

Lai Ching-te said he would order a probe as well. 

However, an engineer told CNA using tin cans "for such purposes in construction was not 

illegal prior to September 1999, but since then styrofoam and formwork boards have been 

used instead. " 
The building is one of 11 that collapsed after the quake, CNA reported, but is the only 

high-rise to completely crumble. 

"The building essentially collapsed onto itself," Elise Hu, an NPR correspondent who was 

in Taipei when the quake hit, told CNN. - When you see the aerial images around Tainan, 

the rest of the buildings are standing. But this particular apartment complex is as 

damaged as it is." 


A woman was pulled alive from the rubble Sunday night local time after being trapped for 

40 hours, CNN affiliate SETTV reported. 

The woman identified as Mrs. Tsao was found with her husband and son. The three 

were holding each other, though Mrs. Tsao was the sole survivor. 

Five other family members are missing, SETTV said. 

Another woman, Chien, her three-year-old daughter and her husband were in their 

bedroom in Tainan --Taiwan's oldest city when the earthquake struck. 

Blue cans appear to have been used in the construction of an apartment building that 

collapsed after a magnitude-6.4 earthquake in Tainan, Taiwan, on Saturday, February 6. 

Dozens were killed in the disaster and rescuers were still pulling people from the rubble 

days later. 

 

"I was trapped in a room in a building toppled by the quake," said the mother, who gave 

only her surname. 

"The smell of gas was thick in the air, and I was worried that I would be killed by an 

explosion if not crushed to death in the collapsed building," she told CNA. 

It was a frightening ordeal, one that she has dealt with before. 

She lived in central Taiwan before moving to Tainan and survived the 1999 quakeL21 that 

killed more than 2,000 people. 

"I moved to Tainan after I got married and now I have encountered another major 

earthquake," she told CNR 

'Ring of fire 

Before rescuers freed them, Chien and her family were trapped for three hours in their 

sixth-floor apartment in the 16-story residential building. 

In all, more than 500 people were injured, CNA reported. Ninety-two people remain 

hospitalized late Sunday, according to Tainan's disaster response office. 

Taiwan is in the so called "Ring Of Fire," an area in the Pacific Ocean where intense 

tectonic plate movement causes frequent earthquakes. 

"Taiwan is very used to earthquakes and tremors, but this is far more significant than the 

island has seen in quite a while," Hu told CNN. 



One woman told CNN affiliate EBC that rescuers had to cut a hole in order to help her 

family get out. 

"Fortunately we were stuck under a space created by a baby crib and a closet door, so that 

things won't fall on us and air was able to get in," she said from the hospital, where she 

was being treated for a leg injury. "I was so afraid. 

The quake struck as many in Taiwan prepared to celebrate the Lunar New Year. 

President Ma Ying-jeou canceled his traditional Chinese New Year address to oversee 

rescue and recovery operations at the national disaster headquarters, his spokeswoman 

said. 

It's one of the country's biggest holidays, and some people have as many as nine days off, 

Hu said. "If you can imagine something like this happening during Thanksgiving holiday weekend 
or Christmas travel, that's the equivalent of what's happening here in Taiwan right now," 
she said. 

 Earthquakes for Taiwan isn't a new experience, that doesn't make it an accustomed experience. Once again Taiwan hit by a major earthquake that rocks its foundation and yet most building remained except a high rise made with tin cans. This startling news brings sudden clarity as to why a single building seems to have been demolished while others nearby are fine. Although the writer doesn't seem to have much of a bias he does present the fact that its the poor building style that's costing lives and presents how little the government and justice system is responding. They be outraged and yet he depicts them rather calm, simply postponing and not celebrating their favorite holiday. As an outside company CNN does a good job of being objective and stating the facts of what happens however shouldn't the article demand more response than "simply another earthquake." Peoples lives are at risk and yet even the author writes with little enthusiasm. Perhaps this does contrast how our world has learned to deal with such disasters so commonly it almost doesn't come to much surprise, especially with all that's constantly going on in the world. This is however a call to all for prayer and help for those suffering with pain of losing lost ones, physical conditions, or even still being buried under the rubble.

Yan, Sophia, and Mariano Castillo. "Taiwan Earthquake: Toppled High-rise Built with Tin Cans - CNN.com." CNN. Cable News Network, 8 Feb. 2016. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.