Some of the heaviest rain in decades swamped South Korea’s capital region, turning Seoul’s streets into car-clogged rivers and sending floods cascading into subway stations. At least eight people were killed — some drowning in their homes — and seven others were missing, with more rain forecast, officials said yesterday.
More than 43cm of rain was measured in Seoul’s hardest-hit Dongjak District from Monday to noon yesterday. Precipitation in the area exceeded 14cm per hour at one point on Monday night, the highest hourly downpour measured in Seoul since 1942.
Deserted cars and buses were scattered across streets as the water receded yesterday. Workers cleared uprooted trees, mud and debris with excavators and blocked broken roads. Landslide warnings were issued in nearly 50 cities and towns, and 160 hiking paths in Seoul and mountainous Gangwon Province were closed.
Photo: AP
Emergency crews worked overnight to restore most subway service as of yesterday morning, but a route linking towns north of Seoul was shut in the evening as continuing rain flooded some stations.
Dozens of roads, including major expressways near the swollen Han River, were closed because of rising water levels or partial flooding.
Rescue workers failed to reach three people — two sisters in their 40s and a 13-year-old girl — who called for help before drowning in a basement home in the Gwanak District of southern Seoul on Monday night. Another woman drowned in her home in the nearby Dongjak District, where a public worker died while clearing fallen trees, likely from electrocution.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Three people were found dead in the debris of landslides and a collapsed bus station in the nearby cities of Gwangju and Hwaseong.
Nearly 800 buildings in Seoul and nearby cities were damaged and at least 790 people were forced to evacuate from their homes, the South Korean Ministry of the Interior and Safety said.
The country’s weather agency maintained a heavy rain warning for the Seoul metropolitan area and nearby regions yesterday and said precipitation might reach 5cm to 10cm an hour in some areas.
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