Typhoon Morakot hits Taiwan

On August 9, 2009 Typhoon Morakot hit Taiwan and brought death, pain, and destruction to our Sister City Koahsiung County. In our efforts to support our Sister City in this devastating time, we are raising funds to assist the victims and rebuilding homes, schools, hospitals, and other major infrastructure. 

Any donation you make will go directly to Koahsiung County. Your support is much needed and appreciated. (All donations are tax deductible as we are a 501(C)3 non profit organization). 

Facts of Typhoon Morakot

The death toll from Typhoon Morakot was raised to at least 650 Sunday with 160 people confirmed dead and 490 people still missing after the worst weather disaster to hit Taiwan in half a century. The storm that hit two weeks ago triggered landslides and widespread flooding that trapped thousands of people in remote southern villages for days. Kaohsiung County was the most ravaged since it has many mountainous areas where heavy rainfalls dropped. The amount of rainfall (over 2,700 mm) received in three days was 1.7 times more than that would normally accumulate in one year. The torrential downpour triggered mudslide inundating villages, and washing away roads and bridges. Widespread flooding trapped thousands of people in remote villages for days and the broken roads made rescue work even harder. The natural disaster left 4,800 people displaced and losing their families and homes. The storm also caused more than $2 billion in property damage.

So far the rescue work has almost finished and the recovery work is moving forward. Government is now trying to resettle displaced villagers to social housing and construct prefabricated homes for them. In the task of recovery and rebuilding, some of the hardest work, including resettlement of aboriginals whose villages have been destroyed in the disaster, arrangement of children's future education, psychological counseling, is still ahead and it will require the collaboration of governments, private sectors, and NPOs together with volunteers and financial support.