SOUTH KOREA: Seven individuals lost their lives, three remain unaccounted for, seven sustained injuries, and thousands were forced to evacuate in South Korea on Saturday, officials stated, as a third day of heavy rains triggered landslides and caused a dam to overflow.
The Ministry of Interior and Safety reported that 1,567 people had already left the country as of 11 a.m. (0200 GMT), but this number might rise given the likelihood that North Chungcheong province’s dam will flood.
According to provincial authorities, evacuation orders from local governments affected over 7,000 people at different intervals.
At 9 a.m., the water inflow into Goesan Dam reached a peak of over 2,700 metric tonnes per second, which is the maximum capacity it can release.
Korea Railroad Corp. announced the suspension of all slow trains and some bullet trains, and there might be delays in other bullet train services due to safety concerns caused by landslides, track flooding, and falling rocks.
On late Friday, a slow train derailed in North Chungcheong province after a landslide covered the tracks with earth and sand, causing injury to the engineer. Fortunately, there were no passengers on board at the time of the incident.
During a meeting with government agencies on Saturday, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo urged the military to actively participate in rescue operations, working with government officials to mobilise the necessary equipment and manpower for the rescue efforts.
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