
Kaohsiung’s Indigenous villages isolated and in need of supplies
Incessant heavy rain has cut off vital transportation links to Kaohsiung’s mountainous Indigenous villages, leaving local residents isolated and running short of essential supplies. Some villages have taken the matter into their own hands, and braved dangerous rides downhill to get things villagers need. Although help was gradually on the way, locals still hope they could get back to normalcy, above all.
A group of motorcyclists are riding on borrowed scooters in the rain. They’re traveling from Kaohsiung’s Taoyuan District to Baolai in Liuguei District. It’s a dangerous ride, with rockfalls and landslides, and even sections with an eroded foundation.
Cut off from the outside world, six families in Tanguhla Village are running out of baby formula and supplies. Therefore, some locals volunteered to brave the dangerous path downhill to get essential supplies for the infants.
Voice of Kuei-hsiang
Local resident
The little kids in our village have not had any formula milk for the good part of the day now, so we had to make do with what we have and ask people for help.
The mountains have endured heavy rain for more than a week now, and the vital transportation link of Taoyuan District, the Southern Cross-Island Highway is partially blocked off. As a result, many villages in the mountains, including Viviu, Lavulan and Masuhuaz have become isolated.
Water tumbles downhill and turns the roads into streams. Local residents must wade through the water to get home. Meanwhile, it’s also raining incessantly in neighboring Namasia District, and the area is also cut off, with as many as 1,600 people trapped in their homes.
Chen Chi-mai
Kaohsiung mayor
Therefore, I’ve instructed the Agriculture Bureau to coordinate all the farmers’ associations in the area, and prioritize giving these branches an additional 500kg of pork and fresh fruits and vegetables.
A city councilor for the local constituency captured this image showing how all food products on supermarket shelves were snapped up. Meanwhile, there’s also no more cash in ATM machines. After word has gotten out about the locals’ desperate situation, many lawmakers have given help, and even the chair of a supermarket chain has gotten behind the wheel himself to get supplies into the villages.
For now, the residents of these affected villages are starting to get the things they need, but still, their greatest hope is to be able to return to normalcy the soonest possible.
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2025-08-04