Latest news with #LeeHan-kyung
The Star
20 hours ago
- Health
- The Star
Watchful of summer Covid-19 resurgence, Korea urges older adults to get vaccinated
Head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, Lee Han-kyung, visits a clinic in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, and inspects hospital beds on Monday (May 26, 2025). - Photo: Yonhap SEOUL: The South Korean government is closely monitoring Covid-19 resurgences in regional neighbors including Hong Kong, China and Thailand, amid growing worries that a summer resurgence may hit the country again this year. At a Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting Friday (May 30), Director Lee Han-kyung warned of worsening Covid-19 trends abroad. "In regions close to us — Hong Kong, China and Thailand — Covid-19 infections are rising, and this is a cause for concern," Lee said at the meeting. He urged senior citizens aged 65 and above, as well as residents in high-risk facilities, to get vaccinated, stressing that vaccination is key to preventing severe illness and death. According to government data, recent overseas Covid-19 cases are showing a noticeable uptick. In Hong Kong, confirmed cases for the week of May 11 to 17 totalled 977, exceeding the country's previous summer peak of 796. China's rate of positivity Covid-19 test results is steadily climbing toward last year's peak of 21.1 percent, while in Thailand, more than 65,000 new cases were reported in the three weeks following the Songkran holiday in April. Despite the global trend, the number of new Covid-19 cases in Korea remained at around 100 each week over the past month. Currently, South Korea estimates the number of confirmed cases in select hospitals on a weekly basis. Still, the government is taking a proactive stance in consideration that domestic cases last year surged sharply from late July to mid-August. Weekly confirmed cases jumped from 456 in the fourth week of July to over 1,400 by mid-August in 2023. To mitigate potential risks, health authorities have extended the vaccination period for high-risk groups until June 30, two months beyond the initial April 30 deadline. The Korean Medical Association also issued a public advisory, pointing to the seasonal temperature shifts, increased domestic and international travel and a noticeable drop in personal hygiene practices such as hand-washing. It recommended six precautionary measures: maintaining personal hygiene, wearing masks, prompt response to symptoms, testing for high-risk individuals and recent international travellers, getting vaccinated and improving indoor ventilation. Recalling difficulties caused by last summer's surge, the association emphasised that preventive habits such as hand-washing and mask-wearing remain crucial. - The Korea Herald/ANN
Korea Herald
3 days ago
- Health
- Korea Herald
Watchful of summer COVID-19 resurgence, Korea urges older adults to get vaccinated
The South Korean government is closely monitoring COVID-19 resurgences in regional neighbors including Hong Kong, China and Thailand, amid growing worries that a summer resurgence may hit the country again this year. At a Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting Friday, Director Lee Han-kyung warned of worsening COVID-19 trends abroad. "In regions close to us — Hong Kong, China and Thailand — COVID-19 infections are rising, and this is a cause for concern," Lee said at the meeting. He urged senior citizens aged 65 and above, as well as residents in high-risk facilities, to get vaccinated, stressing that vaccination is key to preventing severe illness and death. According to government data, recent overseas COVID-19 cases are showing a noticeable uptick. In Hong Kong, confirmed cases for the week of May 11 to 17 totaled 977, exceeding the country's previous summer peak of 796. China's rate of positivity COVID-19 test results is steadily climbing toward last year's peak of 21.1 percent, while in Thailand, more than 65,000 new cases were reported in the three weeks following the Songkran holiday in April. Despite the global trend, the number of new COVID-19 cases in Korea remained at around 100 each week over the past month. Currently, South Korea estimates the number of confirmed cases in select hospitals on a weekly basis. Still, the government is taking a proactive stance in consideration that domestic cases last year surged sharply from late July to mid-August. Weekly confirmed cases jumped from 456 in the fourth week of July to over 1,400 by mid-August in 2023. To mitigate potential risks, health authorities have extended the vaccination period for high-risk groups until June 30, two months beyond the initial April 30 deadline. The Korean Medical Association also issued a public advisory, pointing to the seasonal temperature shifts, increased domestic and international travel and a noticeable drop in personal hygiene practices such as hand-washing. It recommended six precautionary measures: maintaining personal hygiene, wearing masks, prompt response to symptoms, testing for high-risk individuals and recent international travelers, getting vaccinated and improving indoor ventilation. Recalling difficulties caused by last summer's surge, the association emphasized that preventive habits such as hand-washing and mask-wearing remain crucial.
Korea Herald
06-04-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
3 Indonesian wildfire heroes granted long-term residency visas
The government said Sunday that three Indonesian sailors who helped other residents evacuate from the recent wildfires in the southeastern region were granted F-2-16 long-term residency visas, issued to individuals who made a special contribution to the country. "It has been decided to grant long-term residency based on special contributions to three people of Indonesian nationality who helped senior citizens to safety during the recent wildfires... We offer sincere gratitude to those who saved the lives of neighbors with no regard to their own," said Lee Han-kyung, deputy chief of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. Officials said the Ministry of Justice notified them of the decision on Saturday. It was reported last week that the Justice Ministry was reviewing granting an F-2 visa to 31-year-old sailor Sugianto, a resident of Yeongdeok-gun, North Gyeongsang Province who carried some 60 of his neighbors on his back to safety when the fire spread to his village at around 10 p.m. March 25. The village chief who helped evacuate the residents with Sugianto told local media outlets that he was a "kind young man," who would frequently help older residents carry heavy bags and fix household appliances. Two other Indonesian sailors, one from Yeongdeok-gun and the other from Uljin-gun of the same province, were also granted the same long-term residence visa. The wildfires that ravaged across the southeastern region left 31 dead and 51 injured, according to the officials, Sunday. The largest wildfires in the country's history are thought to have consumed over 45,000 hectares in the northern North Gyeongsang Province alone, forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of residents in the area.
Japan Times
29-03-2025
- Climate
- Japan Times
South Korea wildfires 'largest on record,' disaster chief says
Wildfires in South Korea are now "the largest on record" having burned more forest than any previous blaze, the country's disaster chief said Thursday, as the death toll rose to 26. More than a dozen fires broke out over the weekend, scorching wide swathes of the southeast, forcing around 27,000 people to urgently evacuate, with the fire cutting off roads and downing communications lines as residents fled in panic. "The wildfire is spreading rapidly ... 26 people have died, eight are seriously injured and 22 have been lightly injured," said Lee Han-kyung, disaster and safety division chief. "The forest damage has reached 35,810 hectares, already exceeding the area affected by the 2000 east coast wildfire, previously the largest on record, by more than 10,000 hectares." The extent of damage makes it South Korea's largest ever wildfire, after the inferno in April 2000 that scorched 23,913 hectares across the east coast. Authorities said changing wind patterns and dry weather had revealed the limitations of conventional firefighting methods. Most of those killed were local residents, but at least three firefighters were killed, and a pilot in a firefighting helicopter died when his aircraft crashed in a mountain area, officials said. Last year was South Korea's hottest year on record, with the Korea Meteorological Administration saying that the average annual temperature was 14.5 degrees Celsius — 2 degrees higher than the preceding 30-year average of 12.5 degrees. The fire-hit region had been experiencing unusually dry weather with below-average precipitation, authorities said, with the South experiencing more than double the number of fires this year than last. Some types of extreme weather have a well-established link with climate change, such as heat waves or heavy rainfall. Other phenomena, such as forest fires, droughts, snowstorms and tropical storms can result from a combination of complex factors. "This wildfire has once again exposed the harsh reality of a climate crisis unlike anything we've experienced before," disaster chief Lee said. "The affected areas have seen only half the average rainfall, coupled with unusually strong winds, which have drastically accelerated the spread of the fire and intensified the damage," he said. Expert Yeh Sang-Wook, professor of climatology at Seoul's Hanyang University, said the lack of rainfall had dried out the land "creating favorable conditions for wildfires." "This can be seen as one of the fundamental causes," he said. "We can't say that it's only due to climate change, but climate change is directly (and) indirectly affecting the changes we are experiencing now. This is a sheer fact." A wildfire sweeps through a mountain in Andong City, South Korea, on Wednesday. | Chang W. Lee / The New York Times The impact of South Korea's demographic crisis was also on full display — the country is a so-called super aged society, with one of the world's lowest birthrates. "It is worrying that many of the victims are senior citizens, including patients at nursing hospitals," Acting President Han Duck-soo said, as he ordered the country's interior minister to relocate to the affected area to oversee relief efforts. Rain is forecast for late Thursday, potentially giving authorities a much-needed window to extinguish the blazes. Multiple historic sites, including two listed with UNESCO, were threatened by the fires, with South Korean heritage officials working with firefighters. At UNESCO-listed Byungsan Suwon, a former Confucian academy, the sky was full of haze, reporters saw, with fire trucks spraying water and fire-retardants onto the historic site in a desperate bit to save it. "We are spraying three tons of water every day as a fire prevention measure across the premises, including the buildings," said Lee Seung-myung, head of fire safety team at Andong fire department. "If a fire breaks out here, it is likely to be triggered by flames spreading from the pine trees, so we are now cutting them down near the site to prevent such a scenario," Lee added.
Washington Post
29-03-2025
- Climate
- Washington Post
South Korea struggles to contain wildfires that have killed 28
CHEONGSONG, South Korea — Helicopters dumped water over a burning forest in South Korea on Thursday as fire crews struggled to contain the country's worst-ever wildfires, which have killed 28 people, forced at least 37,800 to flee their homes and destroyed thousands of structures and vehicles. Multiple wildfires fueled by strong winds and dry weather have been raging across South Korea's southeastern regions since last Friday. The government has mobilized thousands of personnel, dozens of helicopters and other equipment to extinguish the blazes, but gusty winds are hampering their efforts. Rain was expected later Thursday. But Korea Forest Service chief Lim Sang-seop said the amount — less than 5 millimeters (0.2 inches) is forecast — likely won't help much in extinguishing the wildfires. The fatalities include a pilot whose helicopter crashed during efforts to contain a fire Wednesday and four firefighters and other workers who died earlier after being trapped by fast-moving flames. Authorities haven't disclosed details of the civilian dead, except that they are mostly in their 60s or older who found it difficult to escape quickly or who even refused orders to evacuate. They suspect human error caused several of the wildfires, including cases where people started fires while clearing overgrown grass from family tombs or with sparks during welding work. Lee Han-kyung, deputy head of the government's disaster response center, told a meeting Thursday that the wildfires showed 'the reality of climate crisis that we have yet experienced,' according to Yonhap news agency. Calls to his center were unanswered. Scientists say the warming atmosphere around the world is driving ever more extreme weather events, including wildfires, flooding, droughts, hurricanes and heat waves that are killing people and causing billions of dollars in damage every year. The wildfires have burned 38,665 hectares (95,543 acres) of land, the disaster response center said Thursday. Observers say that's the worst figure of its kind in South Korea. The center said the blazes have also injured 32 people and forced more than 37,800 people to evacuate. More than 2,600 structures, including homes, factories and other buildings, as well as vehicles, were damaged or destroyed. As of Thursday morning, the center said authorities were mobilizing more than 9,000 people and about 120 helicopters to battle the wildfires. In Cheongsong, one of the fire-hit areas, thick plumes of smoke were bellowing from Juwang Mountain on Thursday morning. Helicopters repeatedly hovered over the mountain, dropping water. The amount of smoke later appeared to have diminished. At a Buddhist temple near the mountain, workers covered a stone pagoda and other structures with fire-resistant materials, while firefighters poured water on sites near the temple. The hardest-hit areas include Andong city and the neighboring counties of Uiseong and Sancheong, and the city of Ulsan. On Wednesday night, strong winds and smoke-filled skies forced authorities in the southeastern city of Andong to order evacuations in two villages, including Puncheon, home to the Hahoe folk village — a UNESCO World Heritage Site founded around the 14th-15th century. Hikers were advised to leave the scenic Jiri Mountain as another fire spread closer. The fires in the past week have destroyed houses, factories and some historic structures. In Uiseong, about 20 of the 30 structures at the Gounsa temple complex, which was said to be originally built in the 7th century, have burned. Among them were two state-designated 'treasures' — a pavilion-shaped building erected overlooking a stream in 1668, and a Joseon dynasty structure built in 1904 to mark the longevity of a king. The Korea Forest Service wildfire warning is at its highest level, requiring local governments to assign more workers to emergency response, tighten entry restrictions for forests and parks, and recommend that military units withhold live-fire exercises. ___ Hyung-jin Kim and Kim Tong-hyung reported from Seoul, South Korea. Associated Press photographer Ahn Young-joon in Cheongsong, South Korea, contributed to this report.
