Torrential rain pounds South Korea for third day as thousands take shelter
SEOUL : More than 5,000 people in South Korea have been forced into shelters as heavy rain pounded parts of the country for a third day, with the deluge killing at least four people and destroying property and infrastructure, the safety ministry said on Friday.
Torrential rain warnings remain in effect for most of the country's western and southern regions and the weather service has advised extreme caution against landslides and flooding through Saturday.
Some parts in the south including the city of Gwangju were hit by record precipitation of more than 400 millimetres (16 inches) in the past 24 hours as of early on Friday, the safety ministry said.
Four people have died and one remained missing, it said. Two were trapped in cars on flooded roads and another died in a basement under flood water in the central South Chungcheong province, it said.
A driver was also killed after a 10-metre-high (33 ft) roadside wall collapsed on top of a moving vehicle on Wednesday in Osan, some 44 kilometres (27 miles) south of Seoul, fire agency officials said.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, who has been vocal about stepping up the government's role in disaster prevention and response, is scheduled to hold an emergency meeting on the weather on Friday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
19 hours ago
- The Star
Schools shut, flights scrapped as Typhoon Co-May nears
In despair: A woman looking outside from her flooded home following tropical storm Wipha. — AP THE nation shut down schools and cancelled flights as torrential rains driven by a typhoon and a separate tropical storm pounded the country's northern island of Luzon. Typhoon Co-May, upgraded from a tropical storm overnight, follows days of monsoon rains that have killed at least 12 people and left another eight missing across the archipelago since July 18, according to the national disaster agency. With maximum sustained winds of 120kph, the typhoon was expected to make landfall on the west coast in either La Union or Ilocos Sur province by this morning, the country's weather service said. Around 70 domestic and international flights have been cancelled due to the storms, the civil aviation authority said. The government announced the suspension of classes across Luzon for yesterday. Tens of thousands were evacuated across Manila earlier this week by floodwaters that swamped some neighbourhoods in waist-deep water and left residents of nearby provinces stranded and in need of rescue by boat. As of yesterday, at least several thousand people in Manila remained unable to return to their homes. 'We cannot send them home yet because it is still raining and some typhoons are still expected to affect the country,' Ria Mei Pangilinan, a rescue coordinator in the capital, said. 'There might be more (evacuees) if the rain does not stop.' Typhoon Co-May was about 210km off the country's west coast as of 11am. Tropical Storm Francisco, meanwhile, was situated about 735km from the country's east coast and on a trajectory towards northern Taiwan. The two storms are not believed to be on a collision path. — AFP
The Star
2 days ago
- The Star
Philippines shuts schools, scraps flights as Typhoon Co-May nears
Children being evacuated to safer grounds during a heavy downpour at a residential area after Tropical Storm Wipha caused intensified monsoon rains in Quezon city on July 21, 2025. - AP MANILA: The Philippines shut down schools and cancelled flights Thursday (July 24) as torrential rains driven by a typhoon and a separate tropical storm pounded the country's northern island of Luzon. Typhoon Co-May, upgraded from a tropical storm overnight, follows days of monsoon rains that have killed at least 12 people and left another eight missing across the archipelago since July 18, according to the national disaster agency. With maximum sustained winds of 120km (75 miles) per hour, the typhoon was expected to make landfall on the west coast in either La Union or Ilocos Sur province by Friday morning, the country's weather service said. Around 70 domestic and international flights have been cancelled due to the storms, the civil aviation authority said. The government has announced the suspension of classes across Luzon for Thursday. Tens of thousands were evacuated across Manila earlier this week by floodwaters that swamped some neighbourhoods in waist-deep water and left residents of nearby provinces stranded and in need of rescue by boat. As of Thursday, at least several thousand people in Manila remained unable to return to their homes. "We cannot send them home yet because it is still raining and some typhoons are still expected to affect the country," Ria Mei Pangilinan, a rescue coordinator in the capital, told AFP. "There might be more (evacuees) if the rain does not stop." Typhoon Co-May was about 210km off the country's west coast as of 11am (0300 GMT). Tropical Storm Francisco, meanwhile, was situated about 735km from the country's east coast and on a trajectory towards northern Taiwan. The two storms are not believed to be on a collision path. - AFP
Free Malaysia Today
2 days ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Texas flash flooding kills at least 13 people, leaves over 20 campers missing
First responders scan the banks of the Guadalupe River for individuals swept away by flooding in Texas. (AP pic) LOS ANGELES : Torrential rains unleashed deadly flash floods along the Guadalupe River in south-central Texas on Friday, killing at least 13 people and initially leaving nearly two dozen girls missing from a riverfront summer camp, local authorities said. The US national weather service declared a flash flood emergency for parts of Kerr County, located in the south-central Texas Hill Country, about 65 miles (105km) northwest of San Antonio, following thunderstorms with heavy downpours that dumped as much as a foot of rain. Dalton Rice, city manager for Kerrville, the county seat, told reporters the extreme flooding struck before dawn with little or no warning, precluding authorities from issuing any evacuation orders. 'This happened very quickly, over a very short period of time that could not be predicted, even with radar,' Rice said. 'This happened within less than a two-hour span.' Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha told reporters that 13 people were found dead from flooding in the area, adding, 'I think there will be more when this thing is over.' Texas lieutenant governor Dan Patrick said at an earlier news briefing that six to 10 bodies of adults and children had been found, some in cars washed downstream. He also said authorities were searching for 23 girls listed as unaccounted for among more than 700 children at several summer camp sites near the banks of the Guadalupe River when the site was inundated by floodwaters at around 4am local time. 'We're praying for all those missing to be found alive,' Patrick said. It was not clear whether anyone unaccounted for at Camp Mystic, a private Christian summer camp for girls, might have ended up among the deceased victims tallied countywide by the sheriff. Otherwise, all other campers were safe, authorities said, but the campers could not immediately be evacuated because roads were made impassable by high waters. Camp Mystic's director said in a message read to reporters that the facility's power, water and internet service also had been cut off. 'Everybody is doing everything in their power to get these kids out,' Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, the top local elected official, said at a news briefing on the disaster hours earlier. Kelly said a number of scattered residential subdivisions, recreational vehicle parks and campgrounds were hit hard. Patrick said the Guadalupe River had risen 26 feet (8m) in 45 minutes amid heavy showers soaking the region. Search teams were flying 14 helicopters and a dozen drones over the area, in addition to hundreds of emergency personnel on the ground conducting rescues from trees and swift-flowing water. The Llano River flowing through adjacent Mason County was also reported running at flood stage, posing 'a life-threatening situation', the weather service reported. With additional rain forecast in the region, Patrick warned that an ongoing threat for possible flash flooding extended from San Antonio to Waco for the next 24 to 48 hours. Personnel from the US coast guard and the federal emergency management agency were activated to assist local authorities in confronting the crisis, officials said.
