More Survivors Rescued In Taiwan Earthquake
As time thins out, rescuers are pulling out more survivors from the rubble of a collapsed Taiwanese high-rise apartment block toppled by a 6.4 magnitude earthquake. Recent updates indicate that four people including an eight-year-old girl and her aunt were pulled out alive after more than 60 hours of being buried in the rubble as families of the victims grow anxious and extremely frustrated over the situation.
According to a CBS News report, official death toll has risen to 38 while more than 100 people are still feared to be under massive debris in a calamity that hit Taiwan during the country's most important cultural and family-centered celebration- the Chinese New Year.
Local tv news channels identified the girl as Lin Su-Chin and her aunt as Chen Mei-jih who were among the lucky ones to be rescued alive from the 17-storey Wei-guan Golden Dragon Building. Other people known to have survived the wreckage were Tsao Wei-ling and Li-Tsung-tian who are both receiving medical treatment as of this time as mentioned in a Yahoo News report.
As rescuers rummage through endless sea of wreckage where many people are still unaccounted for, the government indicates that the priorities of the rescue mission are shifting as the operations enter a "third stage" according to Mayor William Lai- the local chief of Taiwan's worst-hit city of Tainan.
"There are more fatalities than those pulled out (alive), and the number of fatalities will probably exceed 100," remarked Lai as quoted saying by Vice News.
As stated in a report by The Wall Street Journal, 300 survivors, so far, were rescued from the Wei-guan wreckage and from all other damaged buildings in Tainan City and surrounding areas. A hundred more were immediately taken to the hospital for treatment.
Meanwhile, Taiwan has expressed gratitude for the generous aid Japan and United States pledged for the victims of the disaster.
Citing an article from Focus Taiwan, the Japanese government promised to donate $1 million for post-relief and reconstruction efforts that will be coursed through Red Cross Taiwan. United States also pledged $500, 000 and extended condolences for those who perished while expressing concern for those who survived.
