China Beat Archive
Date of this Version
2010
Document Type
Article
Citation
February 13, 2010 in the China Beat http://www.thechinabeat.org/
Abstract
Just over five months have passed since the devastation wrought by Typhoon Morakot, and the survivors of the Siaolin Village 小林村 tragedy are coping as best they can with a lot of help from their friends, charitable organizations, and the government. However, the effects of the disaster still linger. Over 400 bodies of victims buried or washed away in the mudslide that followed hours of torrential rains will never be recovered, and there is not a large enough tract of arable land in the unscathed portions of Siaolin, or even all of Chia-hsien Township 甲仙鄉, to rebuild a community sufficient to house the 247 remaining households, meaning that the survivors have had to accept the reality of having “one village [scattered over] two locations” (一村兩地). Another touching story involves Siaolin’s children, many of whom still suffer emotional scars. The village’s school-age kids now have to attend class at various Chia-hsien schools, not knowing when or where Siaolin Elementary will ever be rebuilt.
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Comments
Copyright 2010. Used by permission.