The Keelung Ghost Festival / Huge Waves Disrupt Water Lantern Release, Burning Paper Houses Tumble into Sea, Rescuers at Risk

Reported and photographed by reporter You T-Ru / Keelung




Water Lantern Floating Event Site




Rescuers struggled to push the lanterns toward the open sea, but the waves were too powerful. Water lanterns over half a meter tall, once lit, were repeatedly blown over by fierce winds and collapsed into the sea. Rescuers kept changing direction in attempts to send them out, yet many were still shattered by the waves and scattered across the water. The traditional “Water Lantern Floating” ritual, which began at 11 PM last night, originates from the belief of providing “departed spirits” who have emerged from the gates of hell with shelter and money in the afterlife. Elaborate paper houses are constructed and filled with joss paper, then burned at sea before midnight on the 14th day of the lunar month to complete the ceremony.








Photo: Crowds of water lanterns.





Rescuers desperately tried to push the lanterns out to the sea’s center, but the waves were so strong that the meter-high lanterns, once lit, were repeatedly overturned by the wind and fell into the water. The rescuers kept adjusting their approach to get the lanterns out, yet many were still broken apart by the surf and drifted amid the waves. The traditional custom of “Water Lantern Floating,” which began at 11 PM last night, is meant to provide “spirits” who have come out through the Ghost Gate with homes and money in the afterlife. Thus, elaborately crafted paper houses are made and filled with ghost money. Before midnight on the 14th day of the lunar calendar, these are burned at sea to complete the ritual.