Part of the wall at Tainan's historic East Gate came down during days of heavy rain, with no one hurt — bad news for one of Taiwan's national landmarks, but a lucky escape for drivers.

• A section of the north wall and the repair scaffolding fell onto the road early in the morning.
• Nobody was passing at the time, so there were no injuries; police and firefighters roped off the debris.
• The gate had already been crumbling for years — leaking roof, cracked concrete, rusting steel, falling tiles.
• Repair work started last November and is not due to finish until 2028.
• Locals joked online that Tainan's rain had cried the East Gate down, a nod to the old legend of a woman whose weeping toppled the Great Wall.

Outlook: City heritage officials will assess the damage while the rain continues, and the restoration timeline is likely to slip.