Taiwan's economics ministry is pushing back on claims that the south got more flood money than Taipei, and the numbers favor the ministry's side — bad news for southern residents now under water.

• Record rain hit Tainan, Kaohsiung and Pingtung, dumping a third of a normal year's rainfall in three days.
• The water fell on old city centers and coastal areas, not just the mountains, so streets flooded across a wide area.
• From 1982 to 2013, greater Taipei took 59% of the national flood-control budget, against 7% for Tainan and 4% for Kaohsiung.
• Only after 2014 did the central government shift money south through its infrastructure program.
• Taipei is now protected against a once-in-200-year flood; the rest of the country is built to a far lower standard.

Outlook: The gap in protection levels will keep fueling the north-south political fight as cleanup begins.