When a North Korean artillery shell slammed into her house and blew up the top floor in 2010, Kim Soon-ok ran barefoot into the street, terrified and screaming that war had broken out.
The barrage of rounds on the island of Yeonpyeong eight years ago killed four people and reduced homes to smoldering ruins in North Korea’s first attack on civilians since the 1950 to 1953 Korean War.
Residents still tremble at the memory and voice bitter suspicion of Pyongyang ahead of an inter-Korean summit today.
Photo: EPA
“Whenever I hear a loud thump, I check outside by reflex,” cafe owner Kim said. “I always go to bed with a bag packed just in case.”
The island’s 2,200 residents live just 1.5km from a disputed maritime border with North Korea.
The Northern Limit Line is not recognized by Pyongyang, which argues it was unilaterally drawn by US-led UN forces after the war.
The boundary was the scene of deadly naval clashes in 1999, 2002 and 2009.
North Korea said its November 2010 bombardment of Yeonpyeong was in response to South Korean shells falling in its territorial waters.
A banner hanging loosely by an island roadside reads: “The bombardment of Yeonpyeong will be tolerated by neither God nor man.”
On a clear day, white concrete buildings and gray huts in North Korea are visible from a mountain top on Yeonpyeong.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has inspected the unit on Mu islet responsible for the bombardment several times, honoring it with the title of “Hero Defense Detachment” and calling the 2010 incident “the most delightful battle.”
In a stunning turn of events, Kim Jong-un is due to meet South Korean President Moon Jae-in today for what is to be just the third inter-Korean summit since the end of the war.
Residents welcome signs of easing threats of war on their doorstep, but remain unconvinced about North Korea’s intentions.
“They spent the last 60, 70 years making things to kill people ... to bombard people and torpedo ships,” 80-year-old Park Dong-ik said.
They view the current rapprochement as superficial and fear that another conflict could erupt at any moment.
Kim Sung-ja, another resident, added that while the current situation seemed peaceful, “who knows what they will do afterwards.”
“If they were to bombard us today, there is nothing we can do,” she said. “We will all die.”
Every corner of Yeonpyeong holds a grim reminder of its proximity with North Korea and the deadly attack.
Seoul has stationed extra troops and weaponry on the island, with military posts scattered throughout, and the sounds of practice artillery fire frequently reverberate.
Education sessions on emergency evacuation are a regular event, usually held at one of a handful of bunkers.
The gates to the island’s beaches are shuttered at 6pm and soldiers patrol the shore in search of explosives that might have drifted from North Korea.
At the center of Yeonpyeong village, two houses shelled in 2010 have been preserved as an education center and macabre tourist attraction, including rusty burned bikes and slabs of smashed concrete stairs.
However, residents lament that the bombardment has scared away tourists for the past eight years and two of the three ferry companies that used to run to the island have dropped the route, leaving only one boat a day.
Some hope the summit could dispel outsiders’ fears about visiting, but 68-year-old fisherman Kim Young-sik, who was born and raised on the island, said: “Yeonpyeong-do is very well known worldwide.”
“It has gained a reputation as a danger zone,” he said.
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