SEOUL, March 26 (UPI) — The death toll from multiple wildfires tearing through the southeastern region of South Korea rose to 24 on Wednesday, officials said, with more than 27,000 residents evacuated and historical treasures destroyed as firefighters race to extinguish the unprecedented blazes.
The fires, which broke out on Friday in Sancheong County and have spread to several neighboring areas, are „rewriting the record for the worst forest fire in history,“ South Korean acting President Han Duck-soo said in an address to the public on Wednesday morning.
More than 42,000 acres and over 200 houses and factories have been destroyed, Han said, as strong winds continue to fuel the fires.
Almost 5,000 personnel and some 128 firefighting helicopters have been deployed to fight the blazes, Han said, with additional help coming from U.S. military stationed in the country.
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Among those killed was the pilot of a firefighting helicopter, whose aircraft went down on a mountain in Uiseong, 110 miles southeast of Seoul.
The region is home to numerous ancient heritage sites, and the fire’s rampage has claimed most of the buildings at the 1,300-year-old Gounsa Temple in Uiseong, a major Buddhist landmark.
The government’s Korea Heritage Service said it had rescued some 17 historic treasures, including wooden printing blocks, Buddhist paintings and a wooden statue, from Gounsa and other major sites such as Bongjeongsa Temple in Andong as of Wednesday morning.
Andong Hahoe folk village, a UNESCO World Heritage site, posted a notice on its website Wednesday saying it was under threat from approaching wildfires and would be closed to visitors.
The Korea Forest Service said Wednesday that firefighters were trying to contain at least five active wildfires. As of 3:00 p.m. local time, fires in Sancheong and the surrounding areas were 90% extinguished, fires around Uiju were 92% extinguished and fires around Uiseong were 62% extinguished, the service said.
„We are responding to the worst wildfire in history with all the manpower and equipment we can mobilize, but the situation is not normal,“ Han said Wednesday.
„The direct reason why the forest fires are not being put out is because strong winds have been blowing all night long,“ he said. „We were desperately waiting for rain today or tomorrow to put out the fires.“
The forecast, however, did not call for any precipitation on Wednesday and just a light rain on Thursday. South Korea has been experiencing drier than normal conditions, and Han said that there have already been 244 wildfires this year — 2.4 times more than the same period last year.
Authorities have not yet officially identified a cause for the fires, but human error is widely suspected. Han said that 71% of forest fires over the past decade have been due to „personal negligence,“ such as the practice of burning trash or carelessness by hikers and mountain climbers.
Han said the government will review its wildfire response once the crisis is controlled and work to strengthen prevention strategies for the future.
„The careless mindset of each citizen must change, but related organizations must also promote forest fire prevention to the public in advance, even to the point of seeming excessive,“ he said. „Once a forest is damaged, it takes more than 100 years to restore it to its original state, and residents of the affected areas will lose their livelihoods.“
SEOUL, March 26 (UPI) — The death toll from multiple wildfires tearing through the southeastern region of South Korea rose to 24 on Wednesday, officials said, with more than 27,000 residents evacuated and historical treasures destroyed as firefighters race to extinguish the unprecedented blazes.
The fires, which broke out on Friday in Sancheong County and have spread to several neighboring areas, are „rewriting the record for the worst forest fire in history,“ South Korean acting President Han Duck-soo said in an address to the public on Wednesday morning.
More than 42,000 acres and over 200 houses and factories have been destroyed, Han said, as strong winds continue to fuel the fires.
Almost 5,000 personnel and some 128 firefighting helicopters have been deployed to fight the blazes, Han said, with additional help coming from U.S. military stationed in the country.
Related
Among those killed was the pilot of a firefighting helicopter, whose aircraft went down on a mountain in Uiseong, 110 miles southeast of Seoul.
The region is home to numerous ancient heritage sites, and the fire’s rampage has claimed most of the buildings at the 1,300-year-old Gounsa Temple in Uiseong, a major Buddhist landmark.
The government’s Korea Heritage Service said it had rescued some 17 historic treasures, including wooden printing blocks, Buddhist paintings and a wooden statue, from Gounsa and other major sites such as Bongjeongsa Temple in Andong as of Wednesday morning.
Andong Hahoe folk village, a UNESCO World Heritage site, posted a notice on its website Wednesday saying it was under threat from approaching wildfires and would be closed to visitors.
The Korea Forest Service said Wednesday that firefighters were trying to contain at least five active wildfires. As of 3:00 p.m. local time, fires in Sancheong and the surrounding areas were 90% extinguished, fires around Uiju were 92% extinguished and fires around Uiseong were 62% extinguished, the service said.
„We are responding to the worst wildfire in history with all the manpower and equipment we can mobilize, but the situation is not normal,“ Han said Wednesday.
„The direct reason why the forest fires are not being put out is because strong winds have been blowing all night long,“ he said. „We were desperately waiting for rain today or tomorrow to put out the fires.“
The forecast, however, did not call for any precipitation on Wednesday and just a light rain on Thursday. South Korea has been experiencing drier than normal conditions, and Han said that there have already been 244 wildfires this year — 2.4 times more than the same period last year.
Authorities have not yet officially identified a cause for the fires, but human error is widely suspected. Han said that 71% of forest fires over the past decade have been due to „personal negligence,“ such as the practice of burning trash or carelessness by hikers and mountain climbers.
Han said the government will review its wildfire response once the crisis is controlled and work to strengthen prevention strategies for the future.
„The careless mindset of each citizen must change, but related organizations must also promote forest fire prevention to the public in advance, even to the point of seeming excessive,“ he said. „Once a forest is damaged, it takes more than 100 years to restore it to its original state, and residents of the affected areas will lose their livelihoods.“
