A powerful typhoon tore through South Korea, burying buildings, uprooting trees, canceling flights and trains, and knocking out power for thousands of people, officials said Saturday.
The rains caused floods and landslides in the central and southern parts of the country, leaving at least seven people dead and three others missing since Saturday morning, the Interior Ministry said, adding that more rain was expected in the coming days. they are coming.
South Korea experiences heavy rainfall in the summer, and its mountains prevent soil erosion.
On Friday and Saturday, five people died in houses and buildings that fell with mud, and one person was buried with dirt and sand, ministry. he said in his voice. A seventh person died after the road collapsed.
A dam in central South Korea overflowed early Saturday morning, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of people living downstream. A train derailed on Friday night when the ground entered the tracks, although no injuries were reported.
More than 1,500 people have been evacuated from their homes since Thursday, according to the ministry, which called in emergency workers to help evacuate residents and rescue people.
The Korea Meteorological Administration said on Saturday that the rain will be very heavy in the next two days, especially in the central and southwestern parts of the country.
South Korea’s government has been on alert this month, with senior officials stressing the importance of safety during the rainy season. This urgency intensified over the weekend, as reports of deaths and injuries began to come in.
“If there is a small accident, escalation is the principle of response to heavy rains,” said Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Saturday, urging the military to join the rescue operation. President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday ordered a “full accountability” by the government.
Parts of central South Korea were under a heavy rain advisory Saturday morning, with up to 1.6 inches expected in one hour in some areas later in the afternoon, the ministry said.
The rainy season in South Korea starts in June and ends in early August. It is dry and sunny all year round, as well as spring poses a risk of wildfires.
This country was already suffering seriously injured and in 1984 he accepted humanitarian aid from North Korea. But recently, annual flood-related deaths have been in the single digits, except for 2011, 2020 and 2022.
last august, one of the heaviest rains in decades caused that at least 14 people the whole world. In 2020, weeks of heavy rain caused floods and landslides across the country, killing 48 people. In 2011, more than 70 people died, including 17 when mudslides hit residential buildings in southern Seoul. .