Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je said on Tuesday that he would present an urban renewal strategy for the city within a month. That’s after seeing the fatal damage of the collapsed Weiguan Jinlong building in Tainan due to the earthquake.
As of Tuesday morning, the quake’s death toll has risen to 41 persons. Of the 41 who died, 39 of the deaths were due to the collapse of the Weiguan Jinlong building. Rescue workers are still working to save over 100 people still missing or trapped in the building.
When asked by reporters about the Tainan disaster, Mayor Ko said he is thinking how Taipei would deal with an earthquake of that magnitude. The Tainan earthquake measured 6.4 on the Richter scale.
The mayor said the city’s urban renewal plans stopped after a lawsuit by homeowners over Taipei’s Wenlin Yuan urban renewal project in Shilin. Mayor Ko said they already have draft plans and will make their strategy public within a month. The city will also release information about areas in the city with soil liquefaction problems.