Six-year-old flood survivor thanks rescuersBy Lo Hsin-chen and Jason Pan / Staff reportersA six-year-old girl pulled from a flooded home during last year’s devastating Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) flood yesterday thanked the search-and-rescue team who saved her. At a Firefighter’s Day ceremony in Pingtung County, the girl, nicknamed Hsiao-yi (小沂), told her rescuers she wanted to become a firefighter when she grows up. Hsiao-yi, center, holding a teddy bear over her face, poses with firefighters Lin Kai-cheng, right, and Hung Po-hsuan at an event in Pingtung County yesterday. Photo: Lo Hsin-chen, Taipei TimesPingtung’s special search-and-rescue team from the county’s Bureau of Fire Emergency Services were among the first outside of Hualien to respond, rescuing 64 people, including Hsiao-yi. Video of the scene, which went viral online, showed the rescuers breaking through the roof to pull the girl out of the house.

Source: Taipei Times January 19, 2026 17:13 UTC