Wildfires continue to burn in Korea a day after historic Seoul blaze

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Wildfires continue to burn in Korea a day after historic Seoul blaze

Published: 03 Apr. 2023, 17:48 Updated: 03 Apr. 2023, 18:19

A helicopter on Monday continues to extinguish a fire that broke out in Hongseong County, South Chungcheong, on Sunday. [YONHAP]

Dozens of wildfires burned in Korea Sunday, and many continued Monday as the air remained dry and the winds strong.

A fire that broke out on Mount Inwang in Jongno District, central Seoul, around noon Sunday was completely put out after 25 hours at 1:27 p.m. Monday, according to the Jongno Fire Department.

The main fire was extinguished in about five hours at around 4:40 p.m. Sunday. Fire authorities reduced the fire response alert from level 2 to level 1 as the main fire was extinguished, but small blazes continued overnight due to strong winds.

This marks the first time authorities declared a level 2 fire response alert for a wildfire in Seoul, according to the Korea Forest Service.

No casualties have been reported, but authorities estimate the fire burned around 15 hectares (37 acres) of forest, translating to approximately 21 soccer fields in size. The cause of the fire is to be investigated.

A big wildfire broke out in Hongseong County, South Chungcheong, at around 11 a.m. Sunday also continued throughout Monday.

Authorities declared a level 3 fire response alert at around 1:20 p.m. Sunday. Around 73 percent of the blaze was put out as of 11 a.m. Monday. It was 66 percent around 2 p.m. as fires spread due to strong winds. Strong winds blew in the area Monday with a gust of 12 meters per second (27 miles per hour).

Over 1,000 hectares of land are estimated to have been affected.

About 17 helicopters were dispatched to put out the blaze, but the fire continued to burn Monday afternoon.

In Daejeon, authorities declared a level 3 fire response alert Monday morning after a fire broke out in Seo District, Daejeon, around noon Sunday. Around 81 percent of the blaze had been put out as of 2 p.m. Monday. It is expected to take more time to be completely extinguished due to strong winds blowing at a gust of 15 meters per second (33 miles per hour). No casualties have been reported, but some 837 residents were evacuated overnight.

According to the Korea Forest Service, the number of wildfires in Korea has increased yearly. The number rose from 197 in 2012 to 620 in 2020. The average land area affected by the fires has also surged, from 72 to 2,920 hectares during the same period.

These wildfires, which usually occur in the spring, now also occur during the summer and winter. From 2010 to 2013, not a single wildfire occurred in July, but an average of eight wildfires took place in the past five years in July due to delayed rainy season or minimal rain.

Dry weather conditions are another factor.

According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, dry air advisories were issued on average 127 days every year in the 2010s, up from fewer than 100 annually in the early 2000s.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]