Zhuang Zhiyang, a math teacher at Nantou First Senior High School, went missing while hiking in the Xinyi Mountain area during the 228 holiday. After a month-long search, his body was found in a bush near a cliff. On the 28th, 12 volunteer firefighters along with the Xinyi Fire Brigade of Nantou County’s Fire Bureau carried his body down the mountain in shifts.
The prosecutor’s examination revealed that the body was severely decomposed, making it impossible to determine the time of death, and the cause was ruled as accidental death.
Lin Cheng-yi, head of the Third Brigade of Nantou County Fire Bureau, stated that after Zhuang Zhiyang went missing, over 1,000 personnel were mobilized in the search efforts. Originally, the search was planned to conclude on the 27th, but coincidentally, Zhuang’s sickle and trekking pole were found that day, prompting the search to continue. Eventually, the body was discovered on a tree trunk beneath the cliff.
Due to the steep and treacherous terrain, recovery operations were extremely difficult. Therefore, yesterday morning, 12 elite police, firefighters, and volunteers were mobilized. They set out at 7 a.m., arrived at the accident site at 11 a.m., and at 1:05 p.m., the body was wrapped in both a sleeping bag and a body bag. It was then carried down manually, reaching the base of the mountain at 3 p.m. The body was handed over to a funeral home vehicle, which transported it to Nantou Mortuary for the prosecutor’s examination.
Chief Prosecutor Chang Chih-yao stated that the body was severely decomposed, with the head even partially skeletal, but no other major external injuries were found. The death was determined to be accidental. The family had no objections and expressed gratitude for the help of the firefighting and rescue personnel.