Taiwan International Ports Corporation, Ltd.

Great challenges bring priceless experience. Relating the unfolding of a historic event in words, pictures, and video offers the chance to bring outsiders into the thick of an evolving disaster and to impart a ‘real time’ appreciation of the interagency effort brought to bear on saving lives, cargo and property and protecting marine environments from further devastation. Furthermore, making these records available in book and film format raises public awareness and vigilance, helping prevent future disasters. In this spirit, the Taiwan International Ports Corporation (TIPC) approached the leaders of the various emergency response teams that were involved in the grounding of fishing boats at Xiziwan during Typhoon Morakot, requesting that they share photographs and videos from that incident. Their words and images have been compiled into a book and documentary film on the Xiziwan rescue effort. The book, entitled “Confidence in the Wind: A Record of the Fishing Boat Groundings at Xiziwan”, has now been released by TIPC. Two versions of the documentary film, “Thoughts on the Calm: A Documentary Record of the Xiziwan Fishing Boat Grounding Incident”, are available on Youtube at https://youtu.be/0aVH9AuPe_M (long version) and https://youtu.be/tKBnGxCJOqs (abridged version). This documentary effort underscores TIPC’s commitment to green port corporate responsibility and to becoming a truly world-class port authority.

The book is divided into four sections, including a foreword, an introduction & history of the TIPC, a narrative history of the incident (Storm Threat, Into Action, Round-the-clock Effort, and Overcoming the Odds), and an appendix. The foreword includes three articles written respectively by Kaohsiung City Mayor Chu Chen (Pray for Taiwan, Pray for Kaohsiung), EPA Deputy Minister Thomas Chan (National-Local Cooperation Safeguards Our Marine Ecology), and TIPC Chairman Men-feng Wu (Confidence in the Wind – How TIPC is Turning Danger into Opportunity). The book highlights how cooperation among central and local government authorities is creating a new, powerful model of disaster response that will hopefully be further refined and realized in future typhoon response measures.

The book introduces in detail the threat brought by Typhoon Morakot, the disaster response measures that were implemented by TIPC and various other agencies, and the selfless, round-the-clock work of everyone in the response effort to quickly and effectively safeguard life, cargo, property, and the marine environment. The book is peppered with images that were provided by the various involved agencies of the rescue work and of the environmental pollution caused by leaking oil. These both vividly capture the sense of urgency in the moment and illustrate the cooperative, interagency disaster-response mechanisms that were put into effect. Of particular interest to many readers may be the description in the appendix of the parbuckling method that was used during the disaster response effort to right one of the fishing boats. The series of images showing the process may be a valuable reference for scholars, teachers, and students in the fields of harbor & river, hydraulic, and civil engineering.

Typhoon Morakot enveloped the Port of Kaohsiung on September 14^th, 2016, driving torrential rains and towering waves onto port facilities. Four oceangoing fishing trawlers moored at Qianzhen Fishing Harbor within the port, which had been lashed together in anticipation of the typhoon, broke free under the storm’s force and were blown out of the harbor. After being pushed northward up the port’s main navigation channel for nearly 8kms, these vessels met the end of their journey along Xiziwan’s rocky coastline.

Immediately after the vessels had broken their moorings, TIPC fully engaged disaster response resources to effectively manage the situation under guidance from the MOTC and the Environmental Protection Administration and in cooperation with the MOTC’s Maritime Port Bureau, Kaohsiung City’s Marine Bureau, the Coast Guard Administration’s Coast Patrol Corps 5, the Kaohsiung Harbor Police Department & Fire Brigade, and private-sector disaster-response organizations. The effort was able to clean up leaking oil from affected areas and to restore the environment in a quick and timely manner, minimizing the long-term effects of the incident. The TIPC-led effort reflected exceptionally tenacious resolve and aggressive determination, helping quickly restore to Xiziwan its widely celebrated scenic beauty and natural charms.

Dealing with the challenges posed by extreme climate conditions is becoming an increasingly regular part of port operations. The Xiziwan grounding incident provides valuable insights and lessons to TIPC and its disaster response team partners, while underscoring the commitment of all in the port and navigation sector to protecting and preserving our shared environment. We have the utmost confidence that our response to incidents in the future will continue to improve.

Contact: Port of Kaohsiung, TIPC
Chih-cheng Shih, Manager
07-5622506 / T02499@twport.com.tw