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A village is flooded after a dam overflowed due to torrential rain in the central county of Goesan on Saturday (Yonhap) |
Heavy rains have killed two people and caused thousands to evacuate their homes nationwide, authorities said Saturday.
The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters said the torrential rains also had left one person missing and six injured as of 6 a.m. Saturday.
The two people died in a building collapse triggered by a landslide in Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province, on Friday.
On Saturday morning, two more people, including a woman in her 60s, are feared to have been killed when a landslide destroyed a home in Bonghwa, North Gyeongsang Province, at around 9 a.m.
In the central city of Cheongju, a car was struck by a landslide at 5:28 a.m. One person was taken to a hospital in cardiac arrest. Another passenger is said to have sustained light injuries.
A total of 882 people from 557 households in 13 cities and counties sought temporary shelters overnight, as heavy downpours continued to fall across the country. Among them, 772 could not return home due to safety concerns.
Around 8,000 residents in the central county of Goesan and the central city of Chungju were later evacuated, before the Goesan Dam began to overflow at around 6:30 a.m.
In the nearby city of Gongju, residents were ordered to evacuate at 9:57 a.m. as an apartment complex was flooded.
A train derailed in Cheongju at 10:58 p.m. Friday as significant rainfall triggered a mudslide. An engine driver sustained light injuries and was taken to a hospital. No other casualties were reported.
Thirty-one cases of damage to public property were reported, including 10 mudslides and six cases where roads were destroyed, while 71 cases of damage to private property were reported, including 22 flooded homes.
Electricity blackouts were reported in 13 cities and counties nationwide. While power has been restored in most places, more than 8,300 households in Mungyeong, Yeongju and Yecheon in North Gyeongsang Province still don't have electricity.
Floods swept away crops and roads. Nationwide, 97 roads remain closed, while 384 trails in 19 national parks are closed.
The Korea Railroad Corp. (KORAIL) suspended all regular trains and some KTX bullet trains that run through the country's central inland region due to heavy rains. KORAIL also warned of slower service in routes connecting Seoul to the country's southern parts, including Busan and Jeolla Province.
The Korea Meteorological Administration issued heavy rain warnings for southern Gyeonggi Province, Chungcheong Province, southern Gangwon Province, North Jeolla Province and western parts of South Jeolla Province, among others.
Iksan in North Jeolla Province has received 434.5 millimeters of rainfall since Thursday, and nearby Gunsan has received 426 mm.
On Thursday, the Ministry of Public Administration and Security raised the natural disaster level posed by torrential rains to the highest in the three-tier system.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Saturday ordered officials to swiftly evacuate people in landslide-prone regions to minimize casualties, and do their utmost to rescue people in affected areas.
