A couple from Nantou County got lost hiking on Shouguan Mountain and called for help. Rescue teams today found Ms. Lai, but Mr. Lin went missing after searching for a way out alone overnight and had not been found by evening.

The husband, surnamed Lin, and wife, surnamed Lai, who live in Caotun Township, went hiking in the Shouguan Mountain area at the border of Puli Township and Ren'ai Township, at an altitude of over 1,000 meters. However, they got lost on their way back. Yesterday afternoon, Mr. Lin called the Nantou County Government Fire Bureau for help. The Zhongxinbei and Puli fire stations dispatched more than 10 people to search the mountain.

Firefighters entered the mountains overnight to rescue them and set up camp to rest around 1 a.m. today. Hearing the call of a Formosan serow in the darkness, they suspected there might be people nearby. The rescue team set out again at 6 a.m. this morning, searching in a specific direction, and found Ms. Lai at 8:30 a.m. on the southern side of Shouguan Mountain. She was brought down the mountain successfully in the afternoon, but Mr. Lin remains unaccounted for.

The fire bureau said that when they received Mr. Lin’s report, they were aware of the coordinates where he and Ms. Lai were located and had advised them to “stay put and wait for rescue.” However, Mr. Lin, seeing lights in the distance at the foot of the mountain, insisted on finding a way out and left Ms. Lai behind. The rescue team found Ms. Lai today, but Mr. Lin has not been contacted due to his phone battery being drained. The rescue team will continue searching overnight in the mountains.

Meanwhile, the search for Mr. Zhuang, a teacher from Tainan First High School who went missing while climbing Zhumu Mountain in Dili Village, Xinyi Township, entered its 20th day. A team of 60 rescuers searched in multiple directions today but found nothing. Recently, the rescue team focused on two areas with unusual odors—High Voltage Tower No. 29 on Provincial Highway 16 and the Danda Forest Road. The family has expressed understanding, and if no new evidence is found by the 27th, the search operation will be concluded. 1050320

(CNA)