Wildfires strike Changnyeong, Yecheon

Social Affairs

Published: 01 Mar. 2023, 18:05

Wildfires strike Changnyeong, Yecheon

Firefighters set up a firebreak in a mountainside area in Yecheon County, North Gyeongsang, where an overnight blaze scorched 370,000 square meters before being extinguished at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday. [KOREA FOREST SERVICE]

Two fires that started earlier this week in southeastern Korea have been extinguished, according to the Korea Forest Service.

The first fire, which began at 5:01 p.m. on Monday in Changnyeong County, South Gyeongsang, burned for over five hours before being put out later that evening.

Authorities said that one woman, who was only described as being in her 70s, suffered burns on her face and was transported to a hospital for treatment.

The Korea Forest Service said that approximately 100,000 square meters (24.2 acres) were scorched in the blaze. The agency dispatched 10 helicopters, 40 firefighting vehicles and 421 personnel to extinguish the fire.

Firefighters also succeeded in putting out a different blaze that began at 3:55 p.m. on Tuesday in Yecheon County, North Gyeongsang.

That fire burned for over ten hours and was only declared extinguished at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday.

The blaze, which burned approximately 370,000 square meters of land, is believed to have started as the result of a garbage incineration attempt gone awry.

At least five houses were scorched, while one firefighter suffered injuries during the effort to extinguish the fire.

An official at the local firefighting command who spoke on condition of anonymity to Yonhap said that the fire likely started at a location between houses and local agricultural fields.

“We told residents even up until yesterday not to try and incinerate garbage, and to at least obtain a permit to do so if they needed to, but it all seems to have been in vain,” he complained.

The local firefighting command dispatched 19 helicopters to douse water on the blaze as day broke around 7 a.m.

At least 367 local residents were evacuated at the peak of the blaze, with 315 taking shelter overnight at a local government center for the elderly.

Over 50 percent of forest fires in Korea occur in early spring, when forests tend to be the driest and vegetation is primed to burn, according to research published in Applied Sciences.

Large blazes in multiple locations along the eastern coast of the country in March last year destroyed 319 homes and forced more than 7,000 people to evacuate.

The total area scorched by those fires was roughly equivalent to one-third of Seoul.

BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]