Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation

A tropical depression brought heavy rain and flooded the coastline of Chiayi County. Worst-hit was the township of Dongshih. In some of its villages, the water was chest-high. All the residents of Zhangtan village had to be evacuated to temporary shelters.

As the waters began to recede, Tzu Chi volunteers started home visits. They went to the households that had been affected and talked to their people and comforted them. If they found a family in need, they promised to provide further assistance.

When Ms. Wong saw the volunteers, she grabbed the arm of one of them and cried: “I always believed in Tzu Chi. I knew you would come for me. When the flood waters came, they reached my waist. I had no water, no electricity, no food. I kept wishing that Tzu Chi would come to help me.” Listening to her anguish, the volunteers could not hold back their tears.

	Tzu Chi volunteers visit a family affected by the floods and bring them blessings. (Photo by Tsai Yi-Ru; location: Puzi City, Chiayi County; date: 2018/08/28)
	“Is it the sea or a paddy field?” “It’s a fish farm.” On a street of Pudai Harbor, the water level is still high and it is difficult to distinguish between the sea and the fields. A Tzu Chi volunteer holds the hands of an elderly lady; she is worried about her financial situation. Volunteers give her relief money. (Photo by Liu May-Li; location: Pudai, Chiayi County; date: 2018/08/26)
	“My house has been flooded since yesterday. I couldn’t sleep. Thank you for giving us the meal boxes. We haven’t had rice to eat since yesterday.” (Photo by Chuang Huang-Min; location: Madou, Tainan County; date: 2018/08/25)
	“Tzu Chi’s meal box is here!” Volunteers push the boat, loaded with 400 meal boxes, and use a bullhorn to notify the residents. (Photo by Chuang Huang-Min; location: Madou, Tainan County; date: 2018/08/25)
	In the pouring rain, Tzu Chi volunteers walk door-to-door to deliver meal boxes. (Photo by Hsiao Chi-Chia; location: Pudai, Chiayi County; date: 2018/08/25)
	“Thank you very much.” The gentleman is very happy to receive the basket full of meal boxes. According to his experiences of the previous day, volunteer Tsai Fu-Hsin invented a way for people on the second floor of a building to receive the meal boxes. He tied a weight on one side of the string, and a basket on the other side; volunteers throw the ball to the people on the second floor, so they can pull the basket up. (Photo by Yang Mon-Ren; location: Pudai, Chiayi County; date: 2018/08/25)
	Before dawn, Tzu Chi volunteers gathered in the kitchen of their local office and prepared with caps and masks. They divided into teams -- some clean and dry the bowls, some wash vegetables…Chen Ming-Chu was the coordinator; she oversaw the whole process, to have the vegetarian meal boxes ready in time for the flood-affected residents. (Photo by Yeh Li-Chun; location: Tzu Chi office, Chiayi County; date: 2018/08/25)