Typhoon and Tamsui

It gets a little tiring, every time a typhoon visits Taiwan (this time, 潭美颱風), TV news reporters will congregate in Tamsui to show that Tamsui "老街" is flooded, when in fact, only two spots along the Tamsui River are. One is in front of the Starbuck's where George Leslie Mackay's kneeling bronze statue is located, and the other is on the outer skirts of the new landfill area. Neither is anywhere near 老街.

Below: reporters, Starbucks, and the praying George Leslie Mackay:

And the landfill area (flooding is an expected consequence of claiming land from the unforgiving sea):

Of course, the real 老街, i.e., 中正路, is just a little wet:

So is the rest of the area along Tamsui River:

There you have it: Tamsui is safe and sound. Please pay no attention to the false news reports.

A bit of nostalgia here: It was the same way when we were growing up in the 50s, not much flooding was going on, either. Our elementary school remained open, as were other schools both big and small, and we had to cross a muddy 中山路 to reach the school ground. The aftermath was even more spectacular. The River would turn yellow from soil washed down from upstream. It took a few days for the high water level to subside. Nothing much has changed since - except these days schools are sometimes closed for safety reasons.