Meeting with two Canadians who almost died in the Taiwan earthquake

Lélia Lemay, originally from Longueuil, and her boyfriend Brandon Iwanyshyn, from Edmonton, were hiking in the Taroko gorges, in the east of the island, when the earth shook.

However, it must have been a magical week of vacation for the young couple who reside in Dalian, China. Both work in an international school.

Taroko Gorge was the perfect setting to celebrate Lélia’s 34th birthday.

h there, so we started our hike at 7h15. The gorge was turquoise, the sky blue”,”text”:”It was a perfect day. We know that there are a lot of tourist buses arriving there around 8 a.m., so we started our hike at 7:15 a.m. The gorge was turquoise, the sky blue”}}”>It was a perfect day. We know that there are a lot of tourist buses arriving there around 8 a.m., so we started our hike at 7:15 a.m. The gorge was turquoise, the sky bluerecalls Lélia Lemay, in an interview with Radio-Canada.

Lélia and Brandon were alone in a clearing when suddenly, at 7:58 a.m. on Wednesday last week, the earth shook, causing landslides all around them.

We were attacked by rocks, says Lélia. Everything was brown, you couldn’t see anything. With the impact of the rocks, I fell to the ground. I tried to protect my head. I tried to get up, but the pressure was really strong from everything that was falling.

I just said to myself: “There it is, it’s April 3. Tomorrow, I won’t be 34. It ends now.”

In shock, they still managed to run to take refuge near a small power plant located nearby.

We don’t really remember that part. But the only thing we can really assume is that, yes, those survival instincts kicked in and we sprinted for that coverrecounts Brandon.

I remember the concrete shelter, but it was locked, so we couldn’t get in, he adds. The last thing I remember is us being on all fours and trying to protect ourselves. We hid behind this little wall.

Both were seriously injured.

Lélia suffered fractured vertebrae and numerous injuries. Brandon suffered a compound fracture to his skull and another to his foot.

At 3:30 that afternoon, we said, “We have about two hours of daylight left.” We walked for 45 minutes. We knew we both had injuries, but we said, “Can we walk? Yes. So let’s do it.”

:”I’m OK, I’m fine.“(“It’s okay, I’m fine.”) But I had seen his cut, I knew it wasn’t”fine“. I didn’t want us to spend the night”,”text”:”I really didn’t want to spend the night. Brandon, he hadn’t seen the cut on his head. Him , he told me: “I’m OK, I’m fine.” “fine”. I didn’t want us to spend the night”}}”>I really didn’t want to spend the night. Brandon, he hadn’t seen the cut on his head. He told me: “I’m OK, I’m fine.” (“It’s okay, I’m okay.”) But I had seen his cut, I knew it wasn’t.”fine“. I didn’t want us to spend the nightinsists Lélia.

Driven by survival instincts and adrenaline, they gave their location to their loved ones before losing cell reception. With almost no food or water, they managed to make it to the trailhead before being evacuated later in the evening with other hikers.

Brandon had recorded all the data of their hike since they left. This was one of the most important elements enabling their rescue and navigation to find the starting point of the trail.

We noticed that the rocks did not tumble into the river, points out Brandon. So we thought that using the river would be our best choice to get there despite the many aftershocks.

We finally arrived at this place where there are shelters, where they sell food and souvenirs, he continues. We found the other 10 survivors there. They were all protected there. And they said no rocks fell in that area. Seeing everyone safe was like Christmas morning!

The group of 12 hikers were taken to a hospital in Hualien.

The couple will have to stay there for at least 10 more days to recover from the surgeries. Lélia wears a cervical collar and Brandon has had his head shaved since his head operation.

Each aftershock – more than 700 have been recorded over the past week – sows panic.

For us, in the Taroko gorge, each aftershock meant that we had to be careful, because rocks were falling, says Lélia. I think this feeling of not being in panic, but on extra alert, is difficult to get rid of.

During the first big aftershocks, when we were in the hospital, I’m pretty sure I had a panic attack. I thought the ceiling was falling on us. It’s a feeling associated with where we were, I guess. Every time there’s a bigger aftershock, there’s a nurse knocking on our door and asking if we’re okayshe confides.

Lélia and Brandon express their gratitude. Impossible to forget, among others, this generous woman, Rovina, whom they met at the hospital.

She just saw that I was in pain. She took my hand and stroked my hair, Lélia explains. She found out it was my birthday, then she came back with a cake and a birthday card. It was just incredible, the kindness of people, of strangers.

We have been completely overwhelmed by the love and support from our friends, our families, our co-workers, everyone who is part of the community hereadds Brandon.

The couple also say they are impressed by the help provided quickly and consistently by the Canadian consulate in Taipei. A representative visited them almost every day at the hospital.

The program for the next few days despite the constant pain can be summed up in one word: rest.

We are going there with small objectives. Be able to walk down the hall. Today I took a shower with the help of the nurses. Monday we were able to watch a movie. Little things like that. I think that every day we really feel bettersaid Lélia.