TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Torrential rain along Taiwan’s east coast caused a landslide north of Hualien City on Friday (June 7), temporarily disrupting traffic at the start of the holiday weekend celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival. 

Shortly after 4 p.m. on Friday, a slurry of mud, gravel and larger rocks poured down the mountainside onto Suhua Highway at the south entrance of the Chongde Tunnel in Hualien County, reported CNA. The deep mud forced motorists to use a single lane to enter and exit the tunnel for approximately two hours. 

Maintenance crews were dispatched by the local office of the Highway Bureau, and arrived around 4:30. The mud was cleared by 6 p.m. and two-way traffic was able to resume. 

The landslide Friday afternoon, which occurred at the 163.5 km marker on Suhua Highway, was the second landslide to occur within 24 hours. Earlier Friday morning, just after midnight, traffic was briefly disrupted by a landslide at the 164.4 km marker, per CNA.  

In addition to road traffic, the Taiwan Railways Corporation (TRC) reported at 4:27 p.m. the main line on Taiwan’s east coast between Ruisui Station and Sanmin Station in Hualien was also temporarily flooded. The flooding subsided after about an hour and by 6 p.m., trains were back to running on schedule. 

Drivers traveling in the mountains over the holiday weekend are advised to drive with caution, especially during heavy rain.