ANN/THE KOREA HERALD – Heavy rain hit South Korea yesterday, causing floods and prompting many residents to evacuate for safety. Rescue operations were underway in Okcheon county, where one person was reported missing after a landslide.
In Yeongyang county, North Gyeongsang Province, the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) reported 55.5 milimetres (mm) of rainfall in just one hour starting from 3am.
Nearby Andong saw 52.5mm of rain per hour by 3.30am, located 192 kilometres (km) southeast of Seoul.
Residents in surrounding areas received emergency alerts about the heavy rainfall early yesterday, marking the first time such warnings were issued beyond the capital region. By 10am, 197 people from 129 households had evacuated from Gyeongsang Provinces.
Overnight rain left 25 residents stranded in rural villages in Andong and a nearby county yesterday morning.
Emergency responders successfully rescued all of them or assisted in their evacuation. Firefighting authorities anticipate more people might need rescue or choose to evacuate as flooding closed numerous roads in the northern parts of North Gyeongsang province.
A resident in his 50s from Okcheon, 149km south of Seoul, went missing yesterday morning while inspecting his home amid a landslide affecting his backyard, according to firefighters. Rescuers were having difficulties combing through the backyard in search of the missing person due to flooded soil. In South Chungcheong Province, 78 residents living in areas vulnerable to landslides or collapsing of retaining walls were evacuated to safety.
Two drivers, in their 70s and 40s, were rescued by firefighters in the central city of Daejeon after their vehicles became waterlogged and they could not get out.
