2 dead, over 1,300 evacuated as torrential rains hit S. Korea's central, southern regions
Two people have died and two others were injured as heavy downpours pounded South Korea's central and southern regions, authorities said Thursday, warning of continued rainfall in the coming days, Yonhap reports.
As of 4 p.m., more than 1,300 residents had been evacuated from their homes, according to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters.
In response to the escalating damage caused by the ongoing heavy rainfall, the government raised the weather-related disaster alert to its highest level, "serious."
The headquarters also activated the highest stage of its emergency response system, mobilizing all relevant government ministries and agencies for full-scale disaster response.
It marks the first time the emergency protocol has been issued since Typhoon Khanun struck the country in August 2023.
On Wednesday, a retaining wall collapsed onto a moving vehicle in the city of Osan, 52 kilometers south of Seoul, killing the driver.
In Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, a man was found in cardiac arrest inside a flooded vehicle on a road at around 3:59 a.m. Thursday and was transported to a nearby hospital but died.
Two minor injuries, including hypothermia, were also reported in Seosan and Buyeo.
Since Wednesday evening, as much as 400 mm of rain has fallen in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, the hardest-hit area, according to weather officials.
In Seosan, 114.9 mm of rain fell in just one hour between 1:46 a.m. and 2:46 a.m., recording the highest hourly rainfall for July since observations began there in 1968.
Heavy rain triggered a landslide in Cheongyang, South Chungcheong Province, leaving two residents briefly trapped before being rescued.
Fire authorities said the two were transported to a nearby hospital. They reportedly sustained leg injuries but were not in any life-threatening conditions.
In the city of Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, 67.4 mm of rain fell per hour, marking the second-highest rainfall.
As of 7 a.m. Thursday, 26 emergency text alerts for heavy rain were issued nationwide via mobile phones, among which 25 were for the Chungcheong area.
The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) issues such alerts when hourly rainfall exceeds 50 mm and three-hour cumulative rainfall tops 90 mm, or when one-hour rainfall alone surpasses 72 mm.
According to the KMA, regions in the central Chungcheong area, southern Gyeonggi Province and most southern regions could receive more than 300 mm of rain by Saturday.
Around 100 to 200 mm of rain is expected in the southern cities of Gwangju, Busan and Ulsan, with 50 to 150 mm of rain in North and South Chungcheong provinces.
North Jeolla Province and the southern island of Jeju Island are expected to receive 50 to 100 mm of rain.
As reported previously, the death toll from monsoon rains in northern India surpasses 100.
