Jung Min-ho has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2012, mostly covering social and political issues. He currently belongs to the Politics & City Desk where he covers topics such as health, labor and human rights. Prior to joining the team, he was responsible for covering North Korea and sports. His article about a biosecurity breach of Middle East respiratory syndrome won him an award from the Korea Science Journalists Association in 2016. He is also the co-author of the book, "Medical Pioneers of Korea" (2019). He served as the head of the international relations committee at the Journalists Association of Korea from 2021 to 2023.
6 killed, 2 missing as heavy rains pound southern regions
Rescue workers in a boat help evacuate the residents of a flooded village in Daejeon, Wednesday. Yonhap
By Jung Min-ho
Man found dead inside flooded elevator; dozens of flights, trains canceled or delayed
Heavy rains triggered landslides and flash floods in the Korean Peninsula’s southern regions, Wednesday, leaving at least six people dead and two missing, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) and regional fire headquarters.
Record-level downpours — up to nearly 150 millimeters in an hour — pounded the provinces of Chungcheong, Jeolla and Gyeongsang, causing casualties and property damage.
A man in Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province, was found dead inside an elevator at a residential building after apparently being trapped there.
After receiving his call at around 2:50 a.m., rescue workers rushed to the scene, only to find the elevator submerged in the second-basement level. They recovered his body after three hours of draining the water amid a deluge of rain.
Another man, in his 70s, was found unconscious inside the debris of his home, which had been destroyed by a landslide in the early morning in Seocheon, a county in the same province. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead shortly after.
In another accident, a vehicle, driven by a 77-year-old man, fell into a stream at around 5:04 a.m. in Okcheon, North Chungcheong Province. Disrupted by the rushing water, a rescue team could not reach him inside the car until nearly three hours after the accident. By which point, he was dead.
In Daegu, a city in North Gyeongsang Province, a man in his 60s was found dead inside a large container, set up near his house to assist with drainage.
Meanwhile, the family members of a delivery worker in her 40s said they had lost contact with her since Tuesday morning in Gyeongsan, another city in the province. They are worried that she may have been swept away in a flash flood while working.
Vehicles are submerged on a road in Seocheon, South Chungcheong Province, Wednesday. Yonhap
Heavy rain warnings and advisories were issued for the affected regions, where some residents experienced unprecedented levels of precipitation.
On Eocheong, an island near Gunsan, North Jeolla Province, up to 146 millimeters of rain fell per hour at one point, a record since such data collection began there in 1990.
In Hamna, a town in the city of Iksan, South Jeolla Province, precipitation reached a record 125.5 millimeters per hour at one point.
“It was a level of severity that could be seen once in 200 years,” a KMA official said.
Large swathes of farmland and many roads were flooded and damaged as a result. In the county of Buyeo alone, at least 520 hectares of farmland were flooded.
Hundreds of houses, infrastructure facilities and commercial buildings among others, were so far reported to have been damaged. Officials at regional governments are trying to figure out the exact scale of the damage.
Moreover, 25 flights (12 departures and 13 arrivals) were canceled and 19 others were delayed at Gimhae International Airport, according to Korea Airports Corp., its operator.
Train services were also disrupted. Train operations were suspended for many hours on the Janghang Line serving South Chungcheong Province, the Chungbuk Line serving the major cities of North Chungcheong Province and the Gyeongbuk Line serving North Gyeongsang Province.