Bahk Eun-ji has been with The Korea Times since 2012, building a career across multiple desks. She began at the Business Desk, where she conducted in-depth interviews with key figures in Korea's corporate world. Later, she moved to the Politics & City Desk, focusing on education policy and social affairs. She later served as team leader of the digital content team, leading curation efforts on the newspaper’s homepage and reshaping print stories for social media audiences to enhance digital reach. Now back on the Politics Desk, she covers the National Assembly and the Ministry of National Defense, with a renewed focus on political developments.
Southern regions damaged by heavy rain
Rescue workers conduct a search operation to find a woman in her 80s after her house was buried in a landslide in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province, Tuesday. Yonhap
By Bahk Eun-ji
By Bahk Eun-ji
Heavy rain has been causing deaths and property damage in southern parts of the country, especially in South Jeolla Province, since Monday evening.
While heavy rain alerts have already been issued in the southern regions, more rain is forecast there throughout the week, raising concerns over more damage.
More than 500 millimeters of rainfall has fallen in some parts of South Jeolla Province and South Gyeongsang Province since Monday night, inundating houses and farmland.
A woman in her 60s was swept away by water near her house in Haenam, South Jeolla Province, and was found dead, according to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, which suspected that she had drowned.
A road is flooded in Haenam, South Jeolla Province, Tuesday, as heavy rainfall hit the region. Yonhap
While the Korea Forest Service issued a landslide alert for those two provinces, two houses were buried and another two were damaged by landslides in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province, at around 6 a.m. Tuesday.
A woman in her 80s was trapped in one of the buried houses. The rescue authorities conducted rescue operations after confirming that the woman was still alive through her cellphone, but she was eventually found dead.
More than 40 people evacuated their homes in Gangjin and Jindo in South Jeolla Province, while roads and some parts of railroads in South Chungcheong and South Jeolla provinces, as well as Gwangju and Busan, were cut off.
Adding to concerns, it will continue to rain across the country throughout the week as the whole country is under the influence of the rainy season, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).
“The storm clouds over the southern coastal regions will continue to grow, so heavy rain, along with thunder and lightning, is expected in those areas through Wednesday,” a weather agent said, adding that some regions may receive up to 200 millimeters of rainfall on Wednesday.
For Thursday and Friday, all parts of the nation are forecast to have rain, and for Saturday and Sunday as well, excluding some parts of Gangwon Province.
“Heavy rain in southern regions has made the ground weak, and more rain is expected, so we advise people to avoid visiting mountainous regions where landslides could occur, as well as engaging in outdoor activities,” the KMA official said.