St Kitts-Nevis student saved off Taiwan cliff after 17-hour standoff following failed love affair

Taiwan News in Taipei is reporting that a foreign woman student, said to be a national of St Kitts and Nevis was removed from a cliff over the Pacific in Hualien County following a 17-hour standoff on Wednesday (July 10).

Taiwan News said the incident began when passersby told the emergency services that a foreign woman was wandering around aimlessly by the side of the Suao-Hualien highway near the scenic Qingshui Cliff, the Central News Agency reported.

The sighting happened as early as 6 a.m., and rescue workers from the Hualien County town of Xincheng headed immediately to the site. However, as they arrived, the woman walked away from them, and since they were worried that she would take more extreme action, they kept their distance.

The Coast Guard even sent a ship to the area, which pointed a light at the scene as darkness fell, CNA reported.

A teacher, roommates and relatives were called to the scene to try and persuade the young woman to return to the road. By 11 p.m., she finally agreed to have the rescue workers pull her up, ending the 17-hour standoff, according to CNA.

"The woman turned out to be an exchange student from Taiwan’s Caribbean ally of Saint Christopher and Nevis who was depressed after a failed love affair," the reports said.

The student was not identified.