Devastating typhoon leaves 5 dead, 5 missing

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

National

Wed, November 29, 2023 | 14:07

Devastating typhoon leaves 5 dead, 5 missing

Posted : 2016-10-05 18:02

Updated : 2016-10-06 10:09

Taehwa Market in Ulsan is flooded after typhoon Chaba struck the region, Wednesday. The typhoon caused five deaths with one person missing, as well as property damage on Jeju Island and southern coastal areas. / Yonhap

By Kim Bo-eun

At least five people died and and five more are still missing as of Thursday 10 a.m., after typhoon Chaba hit the southern parts of the peninsula.

With an atmospheric pressure of 975 hectopascals and maximum wind speeds of 47 meters per second measured on Jeju Island, Chaba was the strongest typhoon since Maemi in 2003 which devastated the country.

Chaba hit Jeju and the nation's southern regions before heading eastward to the coastal cities of Busan and Ulsan and moving further east away from the Korean Peninsula.

In Busan, a tower crane at a construction site at Kosin University collapsed on a nearby container, killing a worker surnamed Oh, 59. In another part of the city, a woman surnamed Park, 90, died after winds swept her from the second floor of her house. A man surnamed Heo, 57, was found dead after being swept away by waves at a seawall while examining vessels tied there. Busan had waves as tall as 9 meters.

In Ulsan, one person who was swept away by flood waters at the entrance of an apartment building died. A rescue worker also went missing during rescue operations and authorities are searching for him.

Submerged cars in a riverfront parking lot in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. / Yonhap

On Jeju Island, a man surnamed Song, 42, presumed to be a sailor, went missing after falling into the sea from a vessel moored at a dock amid the strong winds and heavy rain. Maritime police are searching for his body.

Operations at Hyundai Motor factory production lines in Ulsan were temporarily halted, after one of the factories was flooded.

A section of high-speed track for the KTX between Gyeongju and Ulsan was closed following a power cut, prompting seven trains heading from Ulsan to Seoul to be canceled. Operations resumed later in the day.

On Jeju, police received reports that eight vessels sank, while three capsized and two were adrift.

Mountainous areas on the island received as much as 624.5 millimeters of rain.

Heavy rains inundated hundreds of houses and cars in many parts of the south, including Busan, Ulsan, Pohang, Gyeongju and Jeju, forcing people to evacuate. Six car insurance companies received more than 1,400 reports of vehicle damage, with the total damage being expected to reach 10.3 billion won.

According to the Korea Electric Power Corp., a total of 211,852 households across the nation ― mostly on Jeju and in South Gyeongsang Province ― suffered power outages.

More than 300 cases of property damage have been reported to disaster authorities.

A total of 42 flights departing and landing on Jeju Island were canceled, inconveniencing 6,500 passengers. Another 36 flights departing from Gimhae Airport near Busan were canceled.

A total of 1,451 schools in South Gyeongsang Province were temporarily closed.

A crane at a school building site in Yeongdo district in Busan collapsed on a worker and killed him after typhoon Chaba hit the city on Wednesday morning. / Yonhap