It was just another Friday morning on the Taiwanese island of Kinmen, a few kilometres from the coast of China, when an air raid siren pierced the calm.
At a local government office, people switched off their lights and dove under tables. Others fled to an underground car park. At a nearby hospital, staff rushed to treat people staggering in with bloody injuries.
But the blood was fake, and the casualties were volunteer actors. Together with the government workers, they were taking part in mandatory civil defence and military drills held across Taiwan last month.
The purpose? Rehearsing their response to a possible attack by China.
China has long vowed to "reunify" with self-governing Taiwan and has not ruled out the use of force. It is a threat that Taiwan is increasingly taking seriously. President William Lai, who took office last year, is behind one of the strongest pushes in years to strengthen defence.
