Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation

On February 4, 2015, TransAsia Flight GE235 crashed shortly after takeoff from Taipei Songshan Airport. This flight was intended for Kinmen Airport but hit a bridge before crashing into the Keelung River. Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation quickly set up service points to provide hot ginger tea and meals for emergency workers and families of passengers. Tzu Chi volunteers also visited local hospitals to comfort the injured and their families. In Tzu Chi's headquarters, located at the Jing Si Abode in Hualien, the disaster command center is set up to coordinate services.

The plane carried 53 passengers, including 31 tourists from China, and five crew members. Rescuers are on site, still trying to find survivors. As the time for this news release, there are 16 fatalities and 26 passengers remain missing.

Upon hearing the incidence, Tzu Chi volunteers immediately responded by setting up service points near the crashing site to provide ginger tea and hot meals for emergency workers and families of passengers. Volunteers also delivered Tzu Chi blankets from Tzu Chi Neihu office to help keep warm for anyone in need. Meanwhile, volunteers divided into teams to visit injured passengers in different local hospitals.