North Korea sends trash-laden balloons towards South for sixth launch in five days

North Korea

North Korea sends trash-laden balloons towards South for sixth launch in five days

Published: 08 Sep. 2024, 16:03 Updated: 08 Sep. 2024, 18:56

LEE SOO-JUNG
lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr

Balloons launched from North Korea are seen from an observatory in Paju, Gyeonggi, in South Korea on Thursday morning. [YONHAP]

North Korea sent more trash-laden balloons toward South Korea on Sunday, marking the country's 17th launch this year.

Pyongyang has now sent balloons in six launches for five consecutive days beginning on Sept. 4.

Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Sunday that North Korea had “resent around 120 balloons at around 9 a.m.”

The Seoul Metropolitan Government informed people that the balloons had entered the city’s airspace at around 11:13 a.m.

The JCS advised people to be cautious about objects falling from the sky and asked them to report sightings to nearby military bases or police. It also said it would respond to Pyongyang’s actions by “prioritizing public safety.”

Pyongyang launched approximately 200 balloons on Saturday evening and night in its previous 16th launch, according to Seoul’s military authority. Around 50 of those items had landed in northern Gyeonggi and Seoul as of 9 a.m. Sunday.

The JCS said the balloons carried “trash such as papers, plastics and plastic bottles” but that no hazardous materials had been detected.

The composition of the payloads attached to the North’s balloons has evolved slightly throughout the launches, which began in May.

The balloons sent in the first and second rounds carried mostly feces and cigarette butts. Papers, pieces of textiles and plastics were found in the following third and fourth rounds, while scrap paper recurred through the fifth through 11th events.

Balloons sent through the 12th through 15th launches included used paper and plastic bottles, the JoongAng Ilbo reported Sunday.

An access to a payload assumed to have been carried by North Korea's balloons is restricted in Gangwon on Saturday morning. [YONHAP]

The trash balloons from North Korea have inflicted more than 100 million won ($74,700) worth of property damages, in total, on the greater Seoul area since May, according to government data released Sunday.

A total of 100.52 million won worth of damages had been registered as of Aug. 10, according to liberal Democratic Party (DP) lawmaker Yang Bu-nam, who received data from the Seoul Metropolitan Government and Gyeonggi provincial government.

The figure included 79.87 million won from the city of Seoul and 20.65 million won from Gyeonggi. No financial damage reports were filed from Incheon.

Seoul accounted for 13 cases and Gyeonggi 38. Among 51 total cases, three are currently processing, with the exact loss amount still being assessed.

A May 29 accident at a logistics center in Yeongdeungpo District, western Seoul, is listed as the most significant damage, with a reported cost of 15.71 million won. A vehicle parked in the center’s compound was destroyed after a balloon fell on it.

No legal grounds or provisions cover losses incurred by the North's balloons, Yonhap News Agency reported.

Last June, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety promised to help municipalities recover residents’ losses and damages swiftly before any legislation is enacted.

Updated, Sept. 8: Added the number of balloons North Korea sent on Sunday.

BY LEE SOO-JUNG, CHO MOON-GYU [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]