At local time 3:57 AM on February 6, 2016, a strong earthquake with a magnitude of 6.6 on the Richter scale occurred in southern Taiwan, shaking all of Tainan City at the intensity of Level 5 and exceeding Level 7 in Sinhua District. This led to the collapse of buildings and soil liquefaction in Sinshih District, North District, West Central District, and Annan District, which caused extensive damages to roads and gutters. The city government had launched repairing work the first time, and the Water Resources Bureau of the Tainan City Government was assigned to assist the Tainan Public Works Bureau and the Annan District Office in undertaking the 0206 Meinong Earthquake Road and Side Gutter Repair Project for Hui’an Street and Annan District. Roughly NTD 22.74 million has been allocated for this project, and bidding was expedited in order to restore the affected areas as soon as possible.
In the Siding Village of Annan District, severe damages to roadside drainage systems threatened the safety of local residents and property. The City Government dispatched staff to conduct surveying damages on roads and side gutters immediately after the earthquake. A considerable investment in manpower is executed to accelerate repairing work and to aim at restoring the affected areas as soon as possible.
The Water Resources Bureau has assisted the Tainan Public Works Bureau and the Annan District Office in carrying out the repairment of pavements and side gutters for six streets and lanes: Wen’an Street, Lanes 51, 145, 151, and 161 of Hui’an Street, and Lane 32 of Section 2 of Bei'an Road. A reconstruction project based on comprehensive surveys has been organized for the 0206 Meinong Earthquake Road and Side Gutter Repair Project for Hui’an Street and Other Lanes in Annan District, with an estimated budget of approximately NTD 22,743,000. The budget was submitted to the Public Construction Commission of the Executive Yuan, after final inspections, obtaining preliminary approval on March 8. Bidding began immediately. The length of side gutter reconstruction exceeds 3,000 m, which is probably greater than the capacity of any single contractor. Reconstruction will begin at two locations simultaneously in order to accelerate repairs, which is expected to be accomplished within 80 days, thereby restoring drainage capacity before the onset of the rainy season.