TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A whitewater rafting excursion turned tragic when a rafter was thrown from his boat and swept downriver in New Taipei’s Wulai District on Sunday (June 4).
Three friends, two men and one woman, traveled from Taipei City to Wulai to go rafting on Sunday. Around 11:30 a.m., the three rafters, all wearing life jackets, were tossed into the Nanshi River. One of them, a 28-year-old man surnamed Lin (林), was swept away, reported UDN.
Local police received a report of a missing person at 12:10 p.m., and officers reached the area, far up a mountainous road, close to 1:00 p.m. New Taipei Police dispatched a search party of 28 people in 15 vehicles, who searched along the river throughout the afternoon.
The Nanshi River is full of rapids and large boulders. When the water level is high, it can be a dangerous environment that is difficult to navigate. Weather also complicated the search effort, with the Central Weather Bureau issuing a heavy thunderstorm warning for the area at 4:00 p.m.
After searching for Lin for several hours, rescuers were forced to suspend operations at 5:30 p.m. due to heavy rain. The search is scheduled to continue at 9:00 a.m. on Monday (June 5), reported UDN.