Raging wildfires damage natural monuments, scenic heritage sites
Five counts of damage to cultural heritage maintained by the government have been reported so far, as wildfires continue to rage in southern Korea, according to the Korea Heritage Service Tuesday.
A scenic site in Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon Province; a natural monument in Hadong-gun, South Gyeongsang Province; two structures at a Goryeo shrine compound in South Gyeongsang Province; a natural monument in Ulju-gun, Ulsan; and a fortress site in Ulju-gun, Ulsan, have been damaged by the wildfires, which have burned for days.
The wildfires in the Gyeongsang provinces are a greater threat to natural monuments than other forms of heritage because recovery is harder, a KHS official said.
The Hadong gingko trees in South Gyeongsang and the Ulsan evergreen trees -- the natural monuments that sustained partial damage -- will need some time to grow back, the official added.
The evergreen shrubs in Ulsan, one of a kind along the country's eastern coast, are significant ecologically as well as historically.
'We've already dispatched a team that surveyed the damage,' another KHS official said of the agency's responses now underway. 'The core shrubs haven't been affected and the damage doesn't affect our long-term preservation plans.'
The damage at the Ulsan fortress site is still being investigated, the official added, saying how the fires started remains unknown.
The KHS, handling government-recognized heritage across the country, is currently distributing fire-resistant materials to local governments and assisting groups in moving objects at greater risk of fire damage.
Gounsa, a temple in Uiseong-gun, North Gyeongsang Province, run by Korea's largest Buddhist sect, is the latest to have moved out its artifacts, including Buddhist paintings, books and statues.
The Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism said it is closely monitoring for spillovers from raging fires, adding that it has sent out a team of volunteers to help displaced residents in the Gyeongsang provinces.
Whether more Jogye Order temples will follow Gounsa in relocating their artifacts remains undecided, according to both the Jogye Order and the KHS. Any further precautions will be implemented in light of the latest developments, according to the agency.
The KHS is releasing the tally of damage to cultural heritage every day at 6 p.m.
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