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'The ground suddenly gave way': Jeonju man survives after sinkhole opens beneath him

Published: 23 Jun. 2025, 15:59 Updated: 23 Jun. 2025, 17:59

A sinkhole lies open on a sidewalk near a crosswalk in Dotong-dong in Namwon, North Jeolla, on June 21. [NORTH JEOLLA FIRE SERVICES]

An office worker surnamed Park from Jeonju, North Jeolla, narrowly escaped death on his way to celebrate his elderly father’s birthday in nearby Namwon when the ground opened up beneath him, swallowing him whole.

Sidewalk collapses beneath man

Park had traveled with his wife and their son to Namwon, where his parents reside.

At around 6:12 p.m. Saturday, the family had just finished dinner at a rib restaurant in Dotong-dong for his father’s 89th birthday when a sinkhole opened up on a sidewalk in front of a crosswalk outside of the restaurant.

The sidewalk gave way with a roar, leaving Park’s wife helplessly clutching their son as the ground tilted beneath them and sucking Park into the gouge, estimated to be 2 meters (6.56 feet) wide, 2.5 to 3 meters long and 1.5 to 2 meters deep.

The sinkhole formed in the middle of a busy downtown intersection. Park suddenly disappeared into the ground in front of his wife and son, who were just 2 to 3 meters away.

Park, 46, sustained injuries in a sinkhole accident in Namwon on June 21. [PARK]

...Then the ground gave way

“I had just helped my parents into the car we parked near the restaurant and was walking back to my wife and son when the ground suddenly gave way,” Park said in a phone interview with the JoongAng Ilbo on Monday. “Had they still been in that spot, they could have been injured too. We missed the accident by just a few minutes.”

Heavy rain had battered Namwon that day. According to the Jeonju Meteorological Administration, the city recorded 176.3 millimeters (6.94 inches) of rainfall between Saturday and Sunday, with 174.9 millimeters falling on Saturday alone.

“When I hit the bottom, it felt like muddy floodwaters were pouring in like a stream swelled from a storm,” Park said. “I had both my phone and my wife’s, but her phone flew out of my hand and my own phone and wallet were gone from my back pocket. Even my watch came off. I dug through the dirt for three to four minutes and finally found my phone.”

A sinkhole lies open on a sidewalk near a crosswalk in Dotong-dong in Namwon, North Jeolla, on June 21. [PARK]

A stranger reached out his hand

Park was rescued by a passerby he didn't know. “I couldn’t get out on my own. I had to stand and reach just to touch the edge,” he said.

“A man who appeared to be in his 50s reached out his hand from the crosswalk side of the road,” said Park. “I grabbed it and climbed up using the solid-looking wall, hooking my leg over the sidewalk to pull myself up. I’m truly grateful to him.”

Park sustained injuries to his arms and legs. His left leg was lacerated and required stitches, and his left elbow was scraped. He also reported back pain but no broken bones. According to the North Jeolla Fire Department, Park was taken to Namwon Medical Center by emergency responders and has since been discharged.

“The hospital staff said I was lucky. If I were shorter, if the hole had been just half a meter to 1 meter deeper or if I had fallen headfirst, I could’ve been seriously injured or even killed,” Park said. “I survived purely by luck. My young son was terrified. I pretended to be fine even while hospitalized.

“But public officials must not assume everything is fine. As the breadwinner of my family, I almost lost everything.”

The Namwon city government conducts emergency repairs using an excavator and personnel in front of a restaurant in Dotong-dong, on June 22. [PARK]

Old drainage pipes likely damaged

Namwon city officials dispatched eight employees, two excavators, one dump truck and one dredging vehicle to conduct emergency repairs. They drained the water pooled beneath the sidewalk, replaced aging pipelines and covered the area with a steel plate. Full restoration, including road and sidewalk repaving, will take time due to the presence of other underground structures and a risk of further subsidence.

Officials suspect the sinkhole was linked to worn-out communication infrastructure installed in the late 1990s or early 2000s.

“There are many telecom, water, sewage and gas lines under that intersection,” said an official from Namwon’s waterworks office. “It appears an old stormwater or sewage pipe near a telecom line was damaged, causing soil to be washed away.”

Park, 46, receives emergency treatment at Namwon Medical Center on the day of the sinkhole accident on June 21. [PARK]

“When we dug into the site, it was clear that it was only a matter of time before a sinkhole formed,” the official added. “We conduct annual inspections of underground infrastructure, but due to budget limits and the life span of materials, we prioritize areas with chronic issues. Unless there are visible signs, it’s difficult to prevent such accidents. With underground systems spread like a spider web, it’s impossible to dig up the entire city for inspection.”

“We are first investigating the cause of the accident,” said a Namwon Police Station official. “Any potential negligence on the part of the city or contractors will be assessed later.”

According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, there were 867 ground subsidence incidents in Korea between 2020 and 2024. Of those, 57 percent were attributed to damage to buried infrastructure such as water and sewage pipes.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY KIM JUN-HEE [[email protected]]