Torrential downpour hits greater Seoul, triggering emergency alerts and commuter chaos

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Torrential downpour hits greater Seoul, triggering emergency alerts and commuter chaos

Published: 17 Jul. 2024, 10:43 Updated: 17 Jul. 2024, 18:38

A trail path along the Cheonggye Stream in central Seoul is flooded by rain on Wednesday, a day when heavy rain advisories have been issued. [NEWS1]

Heavy rain warnings were issued across Seoul and parts of northern Gyeonggi on Wednesday morning, triggering this year's first emergency texts alerting residents to the downpours. Some train and ship routes were disrupted, and roads were blocked off due to the heavy rain.

The intense rain caused the Jungnangcheon Stream in Seoul to swell, closing all sections of the Dongbu Expressway between 9:20 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Wednesday. Three other bridges and roads, along with 29 streams, were also off-limits in Seoul.

The Gyeongui-Jungang Line in Seoul was temporarily closed due to the heavy downpours on Wednesday morning, and operations between Mangwolsa Station and Deokjeong Station on the Gyeongwon Line were suspended for 50 minutes. Some 48 passenger ships from 28 sea routes were unable to operate due to poor weather conditions.

Students were also affected by the sudden rain, especially those in Seoul.

Seventy schools nationwide shortened school hours — including 36 schools in Seoul, 11 in Gyeonggi and 10 in Busan — as of 10 a.m., according to the Ministry of Education.

In Gyeonggi, over 500 cases of heavy rain damage, including house and road flooding and landslides, were reported to firefighters and the police as of 10 a.m., officials said. There were 161 cases reported in South Jeolla, according to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety.

No casualties have been reported as of 5 p.m.

A heavy rain warning was issued for all areas of Seoul at 8:45 a.m. and for 10 cities and counties in northern Gyeonggi throughout Wednesday morning. By 1 p.m., most of these warnings had been lifted. Additionally, flood advisories were issued for eight districts in Seoul.

As of around 8:25 a.m., rainfall of around 70 millimeters (2.8 inches) per hour drenched the capital and inland Gangwon. Northern Gyeonggi faced even heavier downpours, with rates of around 100 millimeters per hour, including 103.5 millimeters per hour in Uijeongbu, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).

Accumulated precipitation was recorded at 342.5 millimeters in the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom and 202 millimeters in Namyangju between 5 p.m. Monday and 11 a.m. Wednesday.

Following the sudden heavy rain, the KMA sent out emergency text alerts warning of heavy downpours to central Seoul and northern Gyeonggi a total of 20 times between 4:24 a.m. and 9:40 a.m., marking the first time such alerts have been issued in the greater Seoul area this year.

Heavy rain alerts — which inform people to remain vigilant during hazardous weather conditions and evacuate if necessary — are sent to residents when hourly rainfall exceeds 50 millimeters, three-hour rainfall exceeds 90 millimeters or one-hour rainfall exceeds 72 millimeters.

Last year, the system was piloted in the Seoul metropolitan area and used six times. It is now operational in the greater Seoul area, South Jeolla and North Gyeongsang.

Following the heavy downpour on Wednesday morning, President Yoon Suk Yeol postponed a planned meeting on regional cooperation in South Chungcheong as the presidential office, mayors and governors agreed to delay the schedule to focus on measures against the heavy downpour, sources said.

The atmospheric pressure responsible for the heavy rains over the country’s central regions moved northward on Wednesday afternoon, resulting in a lull. However, rainfall of an average of 30 to 70 millimeters per hour nationwide is expected on Thursday morning, with many areas expecting heavy rain alerts in the early morning.

Update, July 17: Details of damages were updated throughout the story.

BY WOO JI-WON [[email protected]]