Tourism Bureau Suspends Three Highland Farms from Noon Tomorrow Due to Typhoon Shadell

The Veterans Affairs Council of the Executive Yuan officially announced today that, considering the latest meteorological forecasts and path analysis regarding Typhoon Saudel issued by the Central Weather Administration, its outer circulation will bring significant wind and rain impacts to various parts of Taiwan, with mountainous areas in particular potentially experiencing localized heavy rain or torrential rain levels of precipitation. To thoroughly safeguard the lives, property, and safety of tourists and frontline workers, the Veterans Affairs Council has decided to implement comprehensive preventive closure measures starting from 12:00 PM tomorrow (the 26th) for its three major flagship alpine farms—Wuling Farm, Cingjing Farm, and Fushoushan Farm—suspending all external tourism and accommodation operations and urging the public not to travel to mountainous areas during this period.

These three alpine farms have long been popular destinations for domestic travelers and international visitors planning domestic trips and scenic vacations, situated respectively in high-altitude mountainous areas such as Heping District in Taichung City and Ren'ai Township in Nantou County. Due to Taiwan's steep terrain, whenever typhoon seasons or strong weather systems strike, mountainous regions are often the hardest hit, facing not only the onslaught of sudden gales and torrential rain, but also being highly susceptible to unpredictable natural disasters such as mudslides, road collapses, foundation subsidence, and falling rocks. In the past under similar meteorological conditions, vital connecting transport routes in mountainous areas, such as the Central Cross-Island Highway (Provincial Highway 8) and Provincial Highway 7 Jia, frequently experienced traffic interruptions due to short-duration heavy rainfall, trapping tourists in the mountains and thereby not only increasing the burden on search and rescue units but also placing the public at extreme safety risks. The decisive preventive closure adopted this time by the Veterans Affairs Council learns the lessons from past disaster prevention experiences, solidly implementing the disaster prevention philosophy that "prevention is better than cure."

Following the issuance of the preventive closure policy, the Veterans Affairs Council and the management teams of the respective farms are currently stepping up various typhoon preparedness efforts. The farms have already conducted comprehensive inspections and reinforcement of drainage systems, slope protection facilities, greenhouses, and older buildings within the parks, while simultaneously taking inventory of various disaster prevention supplies and emergency power generation equipment to ensure that remaining staff can maintain basic operations and safety under extreme circumstances where external transportation is cut off. Furthermore, for members of the public who have already booked accommodations and tickets during the closure period, the Veterans Affairs Council has instructed all farms to adopt a lenient approach, proactively contacting travelers to process full refunds or provide flexible compensation plans such as reservation postponements, thereby minimizing the inconvenience and economic losses caused to the public by forced itinerary cancellations and demonstrating a responsive attitude that balances disaster prevention with the rights and interests of citizens.

From a broader perspective, the preventive closure implemented by the Veterans Affairs Council for Wuling, Cingjing, and Fushoushan farms also highlights the shift in mindset among government departments regarding disaster prevention policies in recent years when facing extreme climate change. Past disaster prevention models tended to lean toward "post-disaster response and rescue," but under the trend of intensified climate change and continuously increasing frequency and intensity of heavy rainfall, contemporary national security and disaster relief systems place greater emphasis on "preventive closures" and "source management." Through early warning mechanisms implemented half a day or even a full day in advance, it not only allows tourists ample time to change their itineraries and descend the mountains, but also prevents massive traffic volumes from surging into potentially hazardous mountain roads, further alleviating the traffic control and rescue pressures on local governments, the Directorate General of Highways, and police and fire units, effectively establishing an invisible social safety net.

The Veterans Affairs Council also specifically appealed to the general public through the media and official social media platforms, emphasizing that overall typhoon preparedness requires the cooperation and understanding of all citizens. Although it is currently the crisp autumn season and many people may have already arranged holidays to go up the mountains for sightseeing, the power of nature must not be underestimated, and personal safety should always be placed first. The Veterans Affairs Council pledged that it will continue to closely monitor the latest updates issued by the Central Weather Administration regarding Typhoon Saudel, and only after the typhoon warning is lifted, meteorological conditions stabilize, and engineering units and farm personnel confirm that external connecting roads are safe and park facilities have been fully restored, will it evaluate and announce the reopening time to the public. Until then, relevant units strongly urge the public to strictly follow the government's disaster prevention guidelines and not harbor wishful thinking by attempting to go into the mountains, so as to prevent tragedies from occurring.