A woman in her 40s was arrested for offering high school students drug-infused drinks claiming that they would increase their ability to concentrate, sparking a wider police investigation. On Monday, the suspect, with three more accomplices, had approached students on the street in Seoul's Daechi-dong, Gangnam-gu, the country's premier district for private education, feigning a promotional event for a new drink. Contained in a bottle with a sign that reads, "Mega ADHD," the f

Busan residents show confidence, expressing love for their city

A recently hired civil servant in Guri, Gyeonggi Province, killed himself after handling a complaint from a resident, officials said Wednesday. Local police are investigating the case of the 31-year-old victim, whose name was withheld. The person worked as a grade 9 civil servant at an administrative welfare center, the lowest grade in the smallest unit of the municipal government. The rookie staff member had only recently completed six months of probation. He was found dead at around noon on Tu

An English listening comprehension test taking place in middle schools halted helicopters deployed to fight forest fires in Hampyeong and Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, on Tuesday morning. The Jeonnam Fire Service Headquarters stopped helicopter operations from 11:00 a.m. to 11:30, including the 20 minutes when the radio-based listening comprehension test was carried out simultaneously in 29 schools in nearby areas affected by the forest fires. The forest fires started separately on Monday in

A group of 18 lawmakers led by Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Park Jae-ho proposed a resolution on March 15, earning a parliamentary nod Monday, to enable the "immediate" passage of a special bill designed for organized financial and policy support, recognizing Busan's World Expo bid as a key national agenda. The resolution also stipulates the National Assembly's active support to improve Busan's transportation infrastructure by increasing public access to the proposed W

Part of a bridge in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, collapsed, killing one pedestrian and leaving another in critical condition, authorities said Wednesday. A part supporting the sidewalk of Jeongjagyo gave way at around 9:45 a.m Wednesday. The two, strangers to each other, were reportedly on the bridge at the time. Both fell into the stream below, about 5 meters below the bridge, according to reports. A woman in her 30s was taken to a hospital with cardiac arrest, but was later pronounced dead, wh

JEJU -- Scores of flights were grounded on the southern island of Jeju on Wednesday due to dangerous wind conditions. The weather authorities issued alerts for high winds and wind shear, which refers to sudden changes in wind direction and speed. As of 9 a.m., Jeju International Airport had reported the cancellation of 31 domestic flights to and from the airport. Of the 259 domestic and 14 international flights scheduled for the day, airlines canceled 167 in advance. In the morning, wind gusts

Actress Kim Sae-ron was sentenced to 20 million won ($15,000) in fines Wednesday for driving under the influence of alcohol last year. The Seoul Central District Court handed out the monetary penalty for Kim, 23, who crashed her car into a guardrail and trees lining the street while driving under the influence in Cheongdam-dong, southern Seoul, on May 18. The crash into a transformer cut off electricity to 57 stores in the area for nearly three hours. Kim's blood alcohol level was measured

South Korea posted an uptick in new COVID-19 cases, as a rise in unmasked gatherings increased amid warmer weather, data showed Wednesday. The country reported 14,465 new COVID-19 infections, including 10 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 30,871,740, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. The Wednesday tally was up from the 13,375 reported the previous day and the 13,127 reported a week ago, in a gradual increase of virus infections. The figure hit the highest

South Korea's police chief has met with the head of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation and discussed ways to tighten cooperation to jointly deal with cybercrime, terrorism and other security matters, the police here said Wednesday. In the meeting held on Tuesday at the FBI headquarters in Washington, Commissioner General Yoon Hee-keun of the National Police Agency and FIB Director Christopher Wray also discussed personnel exchanges and education cooperation to strengthen their forces, t

A man is in critical condition after he set himself on fire at Gwanghwamun Plaza in central Seoul, on Tuesday evening, according to authorities. The man, reportedly in his 50s, was taken to a hospital. He appears to have tried to burn himself to death in front of the statue of King Sejong, according to reports. The fire spread to a container but was extinguished minutes later by a person who first witnessed the scene, Jongno Fire Station told local media. The police are still investigating the i

Mayor says Busan Expo will seek solutions to global problems the world is facing together with developing countries

KakaoTalk, South Korea’s ubiquitous mobile messenger app, has finally let users decline unwanted group chat invites from people outside of their friend list, a much-anticipated move for those who have experienced stress or discomfort over exiting group chats. However, if the inviter is on a user's KakaoTalk friends list, the user will be automatically added into the group chat. The new feature, which was added as part of a KakaoTalk system update last week to version 10.1.5, requires

The southeastern port city of Busan plans to seek detailed and meaningful solutions for global warming if it were to host the World Expo 2030. The city has already picked "Sustainable Living with Nature" as one of its World Expo subtopics, and has decided to build eco-friendly transport infrastructure connecting the potential World Expo site to the city’s central area. “No World Expo throughout history had dealt with climate change issues," said Cho You-jang, director

The Ministry of Health and Welfare unveiled a five-year plan aimed at becoming the world's fifth-largest exporter of medical devices on Tuesday. According to the “Five-Year Plan for Fostering and Supporting the Medical Device Industry,” the government will increase exports of medical devices to $16 billion by 2027, which is twice the current level. Under the new plan, the government will invest 10 trillion won ($7.6 billion) for state-funded research and development projects thr