Kaohsiung streets flooded and then left caked in mud

Kaohsiung streets flooded and then left caked in mud

2026-08-28

Residents of Kaohsiung must be getting sick of all this rain. Just a 10-minute downpour is enough to flood their streets, and even though the water quickly recedes, the pavement is left caked in slippery mud. This morning, flooded streets caused commuter chaos and one elementary school even pushed back its first day, but, once again, the commitment of Chiikawa fans never wavers, rain or shine.

Down in Kaohsiung, it was a wet morning, wet enough to cause flooding in sections of the city’s streets. No wonder this car’s windshield wipers are whipping away rain.

Yellowish, mud-filled water is gushing by the truck of this streetside vendor, who, despite his helpless state, still found it in him to take a video of the scene.

Streetside vendor
Sells stuff and saves scooters
The water was rushing down this way. It looks like a river, don’t it? Every time it rains now it always floods. A lot of scooters over there weren’t able to ride past. I even helped lift up one scooter, because if I didn’t it would’ve gotten pushed over and carried away.

Flooding is so severe on this street in Siaogang District that cars and scooters are leaving wakes that would impress a boat captain. Vehicles are being treated to a free drive-through car wash, thanks to passing cars creating ocean-like waves.

After going down a street inundated by muddy water tinged with yellow, this driver said that today driving felt more like piloting a boat. Scooter riders going from the eastern part of Siaogang District to Daliao District had to prioritize safety, as this morning’s downpours left the area flooded.

During the morning rush hour, traffic in both directions had to slow down and proceed with caution. With sections like Yanhai Road turned into shallow waterways, vehicles had to be careful.

This scooter is parked on the side of the road as its driver films the water rushing by. The drainage system isn’t able to deal with this deluge of water, hence the wakes vehicles are creating as they pass by. With all these recent heavy rains, getting to work on streets like Yanhai Road has become a difficult ordeal.

The heavy rain in Kaohsiung on Aug. 28 is a result of the outer bands of Typhoon Saudel and southwesterly winds, which combined to cause flooding.

In Daliao District’s Zhaoming Borough, the roads have become rivers; essentially stuck in their homes, people are flummoxed about how to get to work.

Member of public
Guesstimated height of water
If you walk from over there to here, the water reaches your knees. If you take the other way, it’ll go up to your calves.

The footage of this security camera showed that the rain started coming down a little after 7 am. A 10-minute downpour was enough to create murky floodwater that was mixed with mud.

Member of public
Described wet scene
It’s flooded all the way to here. The entire area is caked in mud.

After the floodwater receded, the streets were left muddy, creating a slippery situation for scooter riders. The area outside of Zhao Ming Elementary School also was flooded today; the student’s first day back at school was abruptly cancelled.

Liao Shih-hui
Principal of Zhao Ming Elementary
Sometime a little after 6 am, we realized that the roads nearby the school had rising floodwater on both sides of the street. We made the call to inform parents that the first day of school would need to be pushed back.

In Lingya District, many scooter drivers suffered through a commute that featured heavy rain. Life was difficult for workers making their way to the office, but things were much merrier for Chiikawa fans who’d gathered at a department store just to get their hands on knick-knacks. Many braved the rain to arrive at 7 am, even though the event started at 9 am.

The line of these Chiikawa fans almost reached 100 meters, proving that, rain or shine, people can’t get enough of these small and cute creatures, which are now in theaters near you.

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