Kaohsiung City Government organized the “2016 flood prevention and rescue exercise” in the vicinity of Xinda Harbor on Jun 6 2016 in order to achieve longitudinal and lateral communications in the first available time of an accident for rapid response and allow all rescue departments or organizations involved to initiate the rescue efforts more efficiently. National Airborne Service Corps participated in this exercise by providing an AS-365 helicopter to make the exercise more realistic.
Global warming has brought extreme climate changes to Taiwan. The month of May is the beginning of flood control season. All departments involved in the rescue efforts started their preparation and establish a regional joint defense system in response to possible impacts that come with natural disasters. National airborne Service Corps has been working with several agencies in simulating the impacts of different types of combinations of accidents and disasters to predict the severity and range of damage, develop appropriate rescue equipment, and take necessary preventive actions.
The scenario of this exercise was that a tropical storm born in the waters surrounding Guam had evolved into a typhoon named “Maggie,” and it was gradually moving west-north-west. The forecast said it would probably make landfall in Hualien City. The Central Weather Bureau announced both the sea and land typhoon alarms. Upon the alarms, Kaohisung City Disaster Response Center went into Level 1 alert, and started analyzing weather information and prepared for the response to the incoming typhoon. It just happened that it was during the high tides when the typhoon was coming in, and it was likely to see seawater intrusion at low areas along the coastlines. Stricken by the typhoon, information of damages started to pour in. In particular, the level of Qishan River grew explosively and 2 people were found drifting in the swift water, while another found stranded on a sandbar surrounding by the surging flood that threatened to take him away in any minute. The condition could not be any worse. To buy some time for rescue, a call was made to request a helicopter. As soon as receiving the phone call, the crew of Squadron 2, 3rd Wing (stationed at Kaohsiung Airport) followed the standard operation procedure and checked the weather report before taking off for the target area. As soon as the helicopter arrived, the air crew skillfully lifted the stranded people, and a round of applause exploded.
National Airborne Service Corps is always on standby 24-7 to ensure the safety of people’s lives and properties. The Corps is constantly preparing for possible accidents or disasters and working on rescue exercises to stay at the best working conditions for dangerous rescue missions at a short notice. The crew is always in the spirit of “care with the whole heart and protect at all times,” and ready to show up when they are needed the most, as to minimize possible damage.