December 27, 2009
Reported by Chiou Kuo-rong
Written by Lydia Ma

It's been more than four months since Typhoon Morakot devastated parts of Taiwan and left many people, mostly Aborigines, homeless. World Vision Taiwan finally finished its first batch of temporary housing units built for typhoon victims and a thanksgiving service was held on December 17 as new keys were handed to each family.

The number of temporary housing units built in this new community totaled 50 and its location is in Taitung county's Chialan village. Each house consists of two floors or roughly 100 square meters – the first floor comprising a seniors' room, a kitchen, a bathroom, and the second floor consisting of a large room with multiple beds. Residents can partition this bedroom into smaller rooms later. Most of the construction materials used for these houses is recyclable.

Commenting on these houses, one resident said he was very happy to finally have a house to live in. He also said most of the furniture in his new house were made from the wood of trees found drifting on rivers after the typhoon uprooted them. His wife also said she nearly had a nervous breakdown after the typhoon because they had just moved into a new house and were just beginning to pay their mortgage when the typhoon left them homeless. The couple is extremely grateful to World Vision for its efforts and to everyone who supported World Vision financially in this project.

Another resident is Chialan Presbyterian Church's deacon, Chi Shiu-mei. She said her whole family is currently living with relatives but they will be moving into these temporary housing units soon. There are over a dozen typhoon victims in her church and many of them are farmers who've lost all their land and produce in the typhoon and mudslides. Their livelihood is a serious concern to them and churches must continue to support them through prayers and deeds.

Taiwan Church News