Landslides and floods claim 18 lives in South Korea
At least 18 people have died in South Korea due to landslides and floods caused by heavy rains that buried homes and carried away people, vehicles, and livestock, according to the government on Monday.
The death toll was expected to rise as rescuers removed debris and searched rain-swollen streams for nine people who were still missing, according to the country’s disaster management office.
Up to 31 inches of torrential rain have poured onto South Korea’s southern and western provinces since Wednesday.
The hardest hit was Sancheong, a county near the central south coast, where 10 people were reported dead and four others were missing. Nearly 12 inches of rain fell there Saturday, forcing authorities to advise all 33,000 residents to look out for floods and landslides.
Photos and video footage from the region showed large stretches of strawberry greenhouses destroyed by floods, with cars tossed upside down among the debris. Aging villagers sat dejectedly, gazing at boulders that had been swept in by the rain and were now occupying their front yards. Residents complained of power and water shortages, according to officials and local media.
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