North Gyeongsang wildfire reveals shortcomings in Korea's emergency response system
Published: 22 Apr. 2025, 18:21
![Firefighters work to contain a wildfire in Andong, North Gyeongsang, on April 25. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/04/22/77ab9365-f8d3-448f-a309-ea42f7c1e52e.jpg)
Firefighters work to contain a wildfire in Andong, North Gyeongsang, on April 25. [YONHAP]
Lee Mi-sang, 65, recalled the terrifying moment when fireballs rained down on her village one month ago at a shelter inside the National Youth Marine Center in Yeongdeok County, North Gyeongsang,
Lee, the head of Seok-ri — nicknamed “Barnacle Village” for its tightly clustered houses on a seaside hill — said it would take at least two years to rebuild and return home.
A wildfire that began in Uiseong, North Gyeongsang, on March 22 spread rapidly across the region, reaching Yeongdeok County by March 25 and leaving Seok-ri in ruins. Residents barely escaped with their lives by sheltering behind a seawall.
“If we had been just 10 minutes late, everyone in the village would have died,” Lee said.
One month on, the scale of the damage continues to grow.
![Parts of the coastal village of Nomul-ri in Yeongdeok County, North Gyeongsang, are blackened by wildfire damage on March 29. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/04/22/0d49420f-1760-44e5-8318-59c786e624d8.jpg)
Parts of the coastal village of Nomul-ri in Yeongdeok County, North Gyeongsang, are blackened by wildfire damage on March 29. [NEWS1]
The wildfire scorched an estimated 99,289 hectares (245,348 acres) — roughly 1.5 times the size of Seoul, according to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Korea Forest Service.
The affected area is more than double what was initially reported immediately after the fire was contained.
The financial toll is also significant. Property damage is estimated at 1.13 trillion won ($796 million). An additional 1.4 trillion won in supplementary budget funds will be allocated to restore affected areas.
The human lives taken was unprecedented for a wildfire in Korea. Twenty-seven people died and 40 others suffered injuries. The blaze displaced 2,898 people from 1,717 households.
Strategy failed, lives lost
Experts attribute the high number of casualties to strategic and tactical shortcomings. Existing emergency alert systems failed to keep pace with the fire’s rapid spread.
Calls to overhaul Korea’s wildfire response system have emerged repeatedly after large-scale blazes, but efforts often stalled once fire seasons passed.
![Homes in Andong, North Gyeongsang, lie in ruins after being destroyed by a wildfire on March 29. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/04/22/e5d40cfd-8a9a-445a-bcc5-f21a7dce1e97.jpg)
Homes in Andong, North Gyeongsang, lie in ruins after being destroyed by a wildfire on March 29. [YONHAP]
The Korea Forest Service spent 39.2 million won to conduct a 2018 government-commissioned study after major fires in Gangwon recommended revamping wildfire management systems to prioritize human safety. The report highlighted coordination issues among national and local agencies, leading to overlaps and confusion during emergencies.
It also proposed that local villages carry out preemptive watering using agricultural sprayers to slow the spread of flames. This measure proved effective in at least one village in Andong, North Gyeongsang, where a resident used a pesticide sprayer to douse homes with water. The village escaped destruction while neighboring communities were devastated.
Such practices, however, were not implemented widely.
“I’m confident that if the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs had used pesticide sprayers — distributed to villages through local governments’ farm machinery rental centers or agricultural technology centers — for preemptive watering, there would have been almost no loss of life,” one official who participated in the wildfire response said. “Relevant agencies failed to share the equipment and data needed for wildfire suppression in real time.”
![The coastal village area of Yeongdeok County, North Gyeongsang, is blackened by wildfire damage on March 29. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/04/22/a064c2e3-96b0-4890-86a6-0241a3f5fb3d.jpg)
The coastal village area of Yeongdeok County, North Gyeongsang, is blackened by wildfire damage on March 29. [NEWS1]
Other proposals, including stricter zoning for high-risk areas and mandatory installation of firebreak infrastructure, have also failed to gain traction. The 2018 report was never made public and has since been largely forgotten.
No centralized system
Experts have also called for a centralized agency to oversee helicopter deployment across government agencies.
During large-scale national disasters like this one, coordination of aerial firefighting resources is seen as essential. The Office for Government Policy Coordination once reviewed a proposal to create such a unit, but it was ultimately abandoned.
![Flames rise over the coastal village of Seok-ri in Yeongdeok County, North Gyeongsang on March 29, as a wildfire that began in Uiseong spreads with strong winds. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/04/22/0130d2a2-9255-442f-8ee1-9e98bd65589d.jpg)
Flames rise over the coastal village of Seok-ri in Yeongdeok County, North Gyeongsang on March 29, as a wildfire that began in Uiseong spreads with strong winds. [NEWS1]
Park Cheong-woong, a professor of fire safety and disaster management at Sejong Cyber University, was part of the discussion.
“Each ministry wanted to retain control over its own helicopters, but from the public’s perspective, it looked like bureaucratic turf wars,” he said. “With this wildfire now responsible for the worst loss of life in history, we need to reconsider how we manage aerial resources.”
Public education needed
Experts also stressed the need to improve evacuation systems. During the North Gyeongsang wildfire, emergency alerts often came too late, contributing to the high death toll.
In Seokbo-myeon, Yeongyang County — where seven residents died — evacuation orders were issued only after the fire had already spread into the area, according to internal records from the Korea Forest Service.
As climate change brings hotter, drier conditions and stronger winds, fast-moving fires are expected to become more common.
Global research shows that while rapid wildfires account for just 3 percent of all incidents, they cause 89 percent of total damage and 66 percent of wildfire-related deaths.
"We need a response system that prioritizes the protection of human life in the face of increasingly large and frequent wildfires,” said Moon Hyun-cheol, vice president of the Korea Disaster Management Society and a professor at Honam University.
Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY MOON HEE-CHUL, CHON KWON-PIL AND JEONG EUN-HYE [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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