Anticipating Air Attacks, Taiwan Prepares Shelters At Subway Stations To Mal

Illustration MRT station Taiwan. (Wikimedia Commons/CEPhoto/Uwe Aranas)

JAKARTA - Taiwan is preparing an airstrike shelter, as rising tensions with China and Russia's invasion of Ukraine raise fears of a Beijing attack.

The preparations include designating shelters where people can take cover, should Chinese missiles start firing, not in purpose-built bunkers but in underground spaces such as underground parking lots, subway systems, and underground shopping malls.

The capital Taipei has more than 4.600 shelters that can accommodate about 12 million people, more than four times the population.

Harmony Wu, 18, was surprised to learn that the underground shopping area, where he and other young people had recently practiced some dance moves, would be turned into an air raid shelter in the event of war. But, he said he could understand why.

"Having a shelter is very necessary. We don't know when war will come and they will keep us safe," Wu said at a site near the Taipei subway station.

"War is brutal. We've never experienced it so we weren't prepared," Wu continued.

Taipei officials have updated a database of designated shelters, put their whereabouts on a smartphone app, and launched social media campaigns and posters to ensure people know how to find places near them.

The entrance to the shelter is marked with a yellow label, approximately the size of A4 paper, with the maximum number of people that can be brought.

Illustration of a mall in Taiwan. (Wikimedia Commons/vegafish in zh-wikipedia)

A senior official at the city office in charge of the shelters said events in Europe had brought a new sense of urgency.

"Look at the war in Ukraine," Abercrombie Yang, director of the Building Administration's Office, told Reuters.

"There is no guarantee that innocent people will not be exposed," he said, adding that is why the public should be informed.

"All citizens must have crisis awareness. We need shelter in case of an attack by the Chinese communists," he explained.

Last month, Taiwan held comprehensive island-wide air raid drills, the first time since the coronavirus pandemic disrupted regular drills.

Among the instructions residents get if a missile enters is to get off in their underground parking lot with their hands over their eyes and ears, while keeping their mouths open to minimize the impact of the blast wave.

Some civil defense advocates say more needs to be done.

Authorities are required by law to keep shelters clean and open, but they don't have to be stocked with supplies like food and water.

It is known, China considers Taiwan as its territory and has increased military activity in the air and sea around it. Taiwan vows to defend itself and has made strengthening its defenses a priority, with regular military and civil defense exercises.