TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — An Indigenous professor trapped in the mountains during Typhoon Gaemi explained on Sunday (Aug. 4) why his three-member team initially refused evacuation.

National Cheng Kung University archaeology professor Sasala Taiban (台邦．撒沙) expressed regret for initially refusing evacuation and hoped society would understand his Indigenous team’s decision, per CNA.

Taiban said people from the Indigenous Jiuhaocha village wanted to continue their mountain lifestyle. He said their villages are physical and cultural manifestations of home, and a democratic society like Taiwan should accept different lifestyle choices and not force people to leave.

The three-member team cares for their village during typhoons. However, after the recent typhoon, their access to the outside world was cut off and their rations might not last more than a week.

Taiban urged the government to airdrop supplies until villagers could resupply on foot. He also suggested installing a solar-powered radio station for future village and mountaineering use.

Taiban emphasized preserving Indigenous people’s relationship with nature as they face urbanization and capitalism. He hoped the public would understand his wish to preserve their connection to nature, and to stop accusing him of wasting resources.

Taiban said he has long participated in Indigenous village reconstruction and studied the impact of extreme weather since Typhoon Morakot devastated his village. He said this trip was a scheduled research trip to end on July 23, but villagers persuaded him to stay amid strengthening wind and rain.

He said he later refused to leave with a rescue team because the buildings needed maintenance after the typhoon. They needed to build fires in each traditional dwelling to remove moisture from the wood.

Taiban was reluctant to leave his home unattended. There are 50 to 60 tribes in Pingtung County, most located at the foot of a mountain or between 200 and 1,500 meters above sea level.