The extreme weather event has wreaked havoc across South Korea, with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety reporting four fatalities as a result of the intense downpours. The victims include a man who died in a flooded elevator, a man in his 70s whose car plunged into an overflowed stream, a farmer in his 60s who was sucked into a drainage system, and a man in his 70s who was killed when his house was hit by a landslide.
Weather data from the country's meteorological agency showed that three areas - Geumsan, Chupungnyeong, and Gunsan - experienced some of the heaviest hourly rainfall on record, with one location in Gunsan city receiving 131.7mm (5.4 inches) of rain in a single hour, which is more than 10 percent of the area's average annual rainfall.
An unnamed weather agency official described the severity of the precipitation as a level seen once in about 200 years, underscoring the extreme nature of the event. South Korean broadcasters have shared images of overflowing rivers, flooded roads, and people wading through waist-deep water in some areas.
In response to the crisis, the Interior Minister, Lee Sang-min, urged the public to refrain from going to underground parking spaces, underpasses, and streams during the heavy rainfall. The ministry also reported that landslide warnings had been issued for at least 50 regions and that more than 3,500 people had been displaced due to the extreme weather conditions. ,
This latest incident comes amid a broader trend of extreme weather events affecting the region. In recent months, South Korea has faced a range of challenges, including a typhoon that prompted the evacuation of thousands of participants from the World Scout Jamboree, and a tropical storm that resulted in one fatality and widespread flooding.
As the global climate continues to change, the frequency and intensity of such extreme weather events are expected to increase, posing significant challenges for disaster response and infrastructure resilience. The tragic loss of life and widespread damage caused by the current downpours in South Korea serve as a stark reminder of the urgent need for comprehensive climate adaptation and mitigation strategies to protect vulnerable communities.
