Hadong wildfire extinguished in 24 hours by 753 firefighters, 36 helicopters

Home > National > Social Affairs

Hadong wildfire extinguished in 24 hours by 753 firefighters, 36 helicopters

Published: 08 Apr. 2025, 15:21 Updated: 08 Apr. 2025, 15:29

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Smoke billows out from a forested hill in Okjong-myeon, Hadong County, South Gyeongsang on April 7. [KOREA FOREST SERVICE]

A wildfire that broke out in Hadong County, South Gyeongsang, was extinguished after nearly 24 hours on Tuesday.

The main blaze in wildfire that broke out on a forested hill in Okjong-myeon, Hadong was brought under control around noon Tuesday, and authorities are continuing to clear remaining embers, according to the Korea Forest Service and Hadong County.

The fire had started at approximately 12:05 p.m. the previous day. Officials estimate the total affected area to be around 70 hectares (173 acres), with a fire line stretching 5.2 kilometers (3.2 miles).

A man in his 70s was hospitalized with second-degree burns on both hands. No other casualties were reported.

However, 506 residents from 312 households in seven nearby villages were evacuated to shelters such as the Okcheon Community Center and Okjong High School. Of those, 264 residents of three villages were able to return home by 9 a.m., and the remaining 242 from four villages are expected to return soon.

Dry weather and strong winds hindered efforts to contain the fire. Five firefighting helicopters were initially dispatched, but the wind carried embers across the steep mountain slopes, making containment difficult.

The Korea Meteorological Administration’s automatic weather system recorded that winds between noon and 3 p.m. ranged from 2.1 to 3.8 meters per second (4.7 to 8.5 miles per hour), with peak gusts between 5.5 and 5.9 meters per second between 2 and 3 p.m.

The Korea Forest Service raised the wildfire response level to level 1 at 1:45 p.m. and level 2 at 3:30 p.m. Level 2 is issued when the expected damage area ranges between 50 and 100 hectares, prompting deployment of additional resources, including helicopters from nearby municipalities.

Firefighters and other personnel carry out extinguishing measures at a forested hill in Okjong-myeon, Hadong County, South Gyeongsang, on April 7. [KOREA FOREST SERVICE]

Authorities mobilized all available resources by sunset on Monday, deploying 36 helicopters, 72 pieces of equipment including firefighting and forest fire trucks, and 753 personnel. Containment rose from 40 percent at the time of the level 2 alert to 87 percent by 7 p.m.

Even after helicopters were grounded at night, the efforts of about 500 personnel, including specialized forest fire units and other emergency responders, had pushed containment to 99 percent by 11 p.m.

Although winds reaching up to 20 meters per second in the early morning briefly reignited some areas, helicopters were redeployed at sunrise to extinguish the remaining flames.

The Korea Forest Service said access roads in the affected area allowed for a relatively fast response despite the strong winds.

Authorities have determined that the Hadong wildfire was not a reignition of the large-scale fires that recently occurred in the county and nearby Sancheong. The previous fire site and the origin of this blaze were 3 to 4 kilometers apart.

Officials believe the latest fire was caused by a man in his 70s using a brush cutter, who suffered burns while trying to put out the flames himself. A full investigation into the cause and extent of the damage is underway.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.

BY AN DAE-HUN [[email protected]]