A 30-member rescue team comprising personnel from the Hualien County Fire Bureau and other agencies recently entered the Qilai Mountains to search for a hiker who had fallen off a cliff. Due to harsh mountain weather, they faced a food shortage crisis. Today, the Tzu Chi Foundation provided 300 portions of instant rice (Xiangji Fan), which were handed over to the second rescue team to assist in the operation.
A woman surnamed Peng from Taipei unfortunately fell into a valley while climbing Qilai Main Peak. Rescue personnel have been searching the mountains since February 27, but due to severe alpine conditions, they encountered a food supply crisis.
The Hualien County Fire Bureau stated that the weather cleared this morning, and rescuers discovered the body of the female hiker Ms. Peng at the bottom of a valley approximately 300 meters deep. Tragically, she did not survive. The terrain at the site is not suitable for helicopter hoisting, so her body still needs to be carried down the steep valley manually, which also extends the time the rescue team must remain in the mountains.
Fire Bureau Secretary Wu Tai-? said that around 1 p.m. on February 27, after receiving a report from the public about a hiker falling into the valley, they immediately formed a rescue team of about 30 members, carrying 100 loaves of bread. However, due to several days of low temperatures in the mountains, the bread became as hard as if it had been frozen in a refrigerator, making it difficult to eat, which led to the rescue team facing their own food shortage.
The Tzu Chi Foundation stated that volunteers quickly prepared 60 bags, totaling 300 portions of instant rice (a type of ready-to-eat meal that can be prepared with either cold or hot water), which will be carried into the mountains by the second wave of rescuers departing tomorrow. 1030304
(Central News Agency)