Taipei City Government

With the arrival of the flood season on May 1 and the heavy afternoon downpour in recent days, Mayor Ko Wen-je ordered an impromptu flood drill testing the disaster responsiveness of city agencies at 7 PM on May 9.

The scenario of the drill focuses on the appearance of a thunderstorm system covering the city starting at 8 PM on May 9, resulting in heavy rainfall – with Shilin District reporting 225 mm of rain within a 24-hour period, with possibility of further downpour reaching 350 mm.

Following confirmations with the Central Weather Bureau on upcoming torrential rain advisories to include Taipei City, the City’s Disaster Prevention Office notified emergency operation-related agencies to dispatch personnel and report to the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) within 1 hour, with the mayor personally presiding over the command center.

After attending the briefing by city officials and task force members, he reminded city staff that the impromptu drill is a way to test the response and mobilization capabilities of the city government. The important thing is to locate possible problems to ensure better room for improvement.

Recalling his recent trip to Japan, Ko noted that the Japanese public are very aware of the possibilities of natural disasters and often plan their SOPs according to worst-case scenarios. This is something we should learn from them, noted the mayor.

After leaving the EOC at 8:45 PM, the mayor stopped by Tongde Street to inspect the drainage-cleaning operation in surrounding areas. He also visited the pump station located on Academia Road later in the evening. The drill concluded at 10 PM.