TAIPEI, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- A barrier lake overflow triggered by heavy rain from Typhoon Ragasa had left 17 dead, 32 injured, and 17 missing in Taiwan as of 4 p.m. Wednesday, according to local authorities.
The barrier lake burst on Tuesday afternoon in the island's eastern Hualien County. The floods triggered by the burst have now receded.
Most of the victims were found in Guangfu Township in Hualien, mainly elderly residents. The fatalities were initially believed to be due to delayed evacuation.
According to Taiwan's emergency operation center, the barrier lake with a full capacity of over 80 million tonnes was formed upstream of Matai'an Creek in Hualien after landslides triggered by rainfall from Typhoon Wipha in July blocked the river.
Before preventive measures could be implemented -- hampered by the difficulty of working in the mountainous area, according to authorities -- the lake overflowed under the heavy rain brought by Typhoon Ragasa, unleashing large volumes of mud and water that destroyed the Matai'an Creek Bridge on a major highway and inundated Guangfu Township.
As of Wednesday noon, more than 5,000 people had been evacuated from Guangfu Township, Wanrong Township, Fenglin Township and other areas of Hualien. About 20 shelters had been set up, currently housing over 700 people.
A spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council on Wednesday mourned the victims killed by the barrier lake burst and sent condolences to their families and the injured.
The Taiwan Power Company reported that as of Wednesday noon, Ragasa had caused outages for 15,315 households in Hualien, Pingtung and Taitung, with 95 households in Hualien still without electricity.
The storm circle of Typhoon Ragasa has moved past Taiwan, while its peripheral circulation has continued to bring rainfall to the island's eastern and southern areas.
Taiwan's meteorological authority on Wednesday continued to issue heavy rain alerts for areas in Hualien, Taitung, Kaohsiung, Pingtung, Yilan and Nantou. ■
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