TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan's annual air raid drill will be divided into four regions from July 22-25, while 42 administrative sectors will have stricter measures enforced.
The Wanan No. 47 Exercises (萬安47號演習) will be held on July 23 in northern Taiwan from 1:30 p.m. to 2 p.m., according to the Ministry of National Defense (MND). It will take place at the same time on July 22 in central Taiwan, July 24 in eastern Taiwan and outlying islands, and July 25 in southern Taiwan, the MND said on Tuesday (July 9).
Buses and taxis must stop and pull over to the side of the street to enable passengers to disembark, and while MRT trains will continue to run, passengers may not leave the stations. Buses will not leave from stations and YouBike cyclists must park their bikes by the side of the street.
City buses can continue driving on freeways, but they will be asked to park at the side of the road on city streets.
Light Rail Transit systems will suspend operations, passengers must leave the trains, and police will guide them to the nearest evacuation area. Flights at the Taoyuan Airport will operate as usual, but road traffic will not be allowed to depart the airport during the drill.
Except for Hsinchu and Chiayi, which will each select one district, the remaining 20 local governments will each choose two administrative areas (townships, cities, or districts) to focus on verifying the actual entry of residents into air raid shelters. In those areas, drivers must immediately park and along with pedestrians follow police instructions and enter the nearest air raid shelter.
The designated areas to enter air raid shelters in Taipei are Da'an and Xinyi Districts, in New Taipei they are Banqiao and Bali Districts, and in Keelung they are Qidu and Ren'ai Districts. For Taoyuan, they are Taoyuan and Guishan Districts, in Hsinchu it is North District, and in Yilan County they are Luodong and Dongshan Townships.
After the air raid alarm is lifted, from 2 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., local governments and participating civil defense teams will set up "wartime refugee reception and relief stations" and carry out disaster rescue drills.
During the drills, each local government's police department civil defense control center will issue the "air defense alert" and use television, radio, villages, schools, and police patrol car broadcasts to enhance the coverage rate of the air raid alarm. Meanwhile, the "Airspace Threat Alert System" will send alert messages to mobile phones, including a link to air raid shelter locations.
The content of the first message issued at 1:30 p.m. will read “[Air Defense Drill] Incoming missile/rocket threat. Seek immediate shelter.” When the drill ends at 2 p.m., a second message will be sent saying “[Air Defense Drill] Air defense alert lifted.”
Dates and locations of this year's Wanan exercises:
Central Taiwan: July 22
Miaoli County, Taichung, Changhua County, Nantou County, Yunlin County, Chiayi, and Chiayi County
North Taiwan: July 23
Taipei, New Taipei, Yilan County, Keelung, Taoyuan, Hsinchu, and Hsinchu County
East Taiwan, outlying islands: July 24
Hualien County, Taitung County, Penghu County, Kinmen County, and Lienchiang County
South Taiwan: July 25
Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Pingtung County
The first Wanan drill was held in 1978 after Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) was made president by the National Assembly. The drill has continued for 46 years.
In compliance with the National Defense Act and provisions of the National Defense Mobilization Preparation Act, the Wanan exercises are meant to verify mobile combat capabilities and evacuate the streets to allow for traffic controls and air-raid siren tests to enhance national emergency response capabilities.
Pedestrians and motorists who fail to follow instructions and clear the streets during the half-hour exercise may be fined NT$30,000 (US$920) to NT$150,000.
