Taiwan Church News.

3794 Edition.

November 11 ~ 17, 2024

Weekly Topical.

PCT Cares the Inflicted Churches and Communities after Typhoon Kong-rey Wreaked Havoc in Eastern Taiwan

Reported by Lin Yi-ying from Hualien

Typhoon Kong-rey made a land fall on Hualien County in eastern Taiwan on Oct 31, 2024. Both Chuo-si and Nan-an Villages, including the Panitaz church of Bunun presbytery in the Chuo-si Township, were seriously devastated by Kong-rey.

To care the inflicted tribal communities, three indigenous presbyteries of ‘Amis, Bunun and Truku sent in heavy agricultural machineries to offer first-aid and summoned tribal volunteers to help the needy. Yu-li church of eastern presbytery even offered lodging rooms to receive the homeless tribal families.

Rev Hsiao Rui-chiao, director of the PCT Church and Society Committee (CSC), drove to Hualian with a team of PCT representatives to inspect the typhoon casualties on November 7. Rev Hsiao delivered financial aid to Amis and Bunun presbyteries for their first-aid rescue actions, and also gave relief cash to the affected households. On November 8, Rev Hsiao went on to visit the churches in eastern presbytery, which were also seriously devastated by Kong-rey, to deliver them financial support.

To invite board members of the PCT CSC to learn and care the destruction and damages of Kong-rey in eastern Taiwan, the first meeting of standing committee of the 69th PCT CSC held on Nov 7 was specially re-located at Bunun presbyterial office in Hualien County.

The invited PCT CSC board members included, Rev Omi Wilang, secretary of Indigenous Mission Committee; Rev Lin Wei-lien, secretary of CSC; Rev Chen Ming-huei, PCT general-assembly secretariat in church and society affairs; Rev Chang Chai-kai, director of CSC of Chi-Hsin presbytery; Rev You Yuen-wen, director of CSC of Eastern presbytery; Rev Bali Soqluman, director of CSC of Bunun Ciuby presbytery; Rev Cuban Istanda, director of CSC of Bunun presbytery; Rev Namoh Arang, director of CSC of ‘Amis presbytery; Ms Liu Yi-chun, associate researcher of National Science and Technology Center for Disaster Reduction, and etc.

Learning Hua-lien was heavily hit by Kong-rey with mudslide running into tribes of Chou-si, Rev Namoh Arang said, many PCT brothers and sisters immediately put down their manual harvesting of rice crops and mobilized heavy agricultural machineries to rescue the inflicted. “It is more important for our brothers and sisters to save lives and protect the vulnerable as soon as possible than harvesting crops at hands,” Rev Namoh Arang said.

Finishing their stay at Chou-si tribes, the PCT representatives went on to visit Nan-an tribe to inspect the casualties caused by Kong-rey. Rev Ciban Istanda reported to the PCT representatives about the disastrous aftermath in Nan-an tribe, including three homeless refugee were accommodated in Takluk Church.

Mr Lin Hong-chun, a co-worker of the Mustard Seed Mission (MSM), who helped clean up the mudslides at the devastated houses, explained to the PCT representatives that a large number of furnitures, mattresses and etc, which were destroyed by the mudslides, had been cleaned up by the PCT volunteers and piled up in front of the inflicted households. Mr Lin and his MSM staff pledged to carry on the job of clearing the mudslides until daily normalcy could be restored.

In Chuo-si village, the road in front of Panitaz Church had become a river, and a small waterfall was therefore emerged due to loss of base-soil. The chapel, pastor’s house and the church’s front plaza were all filled with swathes of mudslides and rocks. In the inflicted communities, mudslides were dig up by bobcat excavators, loaded into the back of trucks, and shipped out off the tribes continuously.

The building in front of Panitaz church is the very house owned by Rev Qaibang Tasnunan, general secretary of the Bunun Presbytery. Due to the base level of his house is very low, Rev Qaibang Tasnunan said, causing the rain water became very easily to rush into the building. He politely rejected the first-aid cash from the PCT representatives, and stressed that it is more important to deliver financial support to Panitaz church as top priority.

Rev Salai Nuanan, pastor of Panitaz Church, hugged Rev Hsiao Rui-chiao and comforted each other when they met. They exchanged sighs to each other and remarked that the occasions they met each other was either due to earthquake or natural disaster, like typhoon. “I hope next time we meet shall not be like this,” Rev Salai Nuanan showed her humorous optimism to Rev Hsiao.

Rev Salai Nuanan said that musical instruments and stereo equipments of her church were all damaged, and the pastor’s dormitory was also uninhabitable for now. Her two children had been sent to Taitung, her mother’s house, to continue their learning through online classes, while she and her husband and the family of Rev Qaivang Tasnunan were accommodated at Yu-Li Church temporarily, Rev Salai Nuanan said.

After learning the financial fund was insufficiently prepared by the PCT CSC for this Typhoon Kong-rey aftermath inspection, Rev Salai Nuanan and Rev Qaibang Tasnunan, who were also among the affected households, immediately returned the first-aid cash and asked the PCT representatives to support and comfort the inflicted church members as top priority.

Rev Hsiao Rui-chiao gave her sincere thanksgiving to both pastors’ great care for the needs of the suffered. She remarked “it is really touching and admirable to see ‘Amis, Bunun, Truku and eastern presbytery’s first aid and disaster relief, compliant to the scriptural teaching as ‘if one member suffers, all suffer together with it.’(1 Corinthians 12:26)”

In addition to her affirmation of the charity showcased amid indigenous presbyteries, Rev Hsiao also expressed the PCT financial support will be delivered promptly to cover expenses in transportation, meals, purchase of cleaning utensils, and etc., urgently needed by the first-aid providers, engaged parties and co-workers.

Translated by Peter Wolfe