고성 산불 잔불 정리 중...'재난사태' 선포
We begin with the massive wildfire in Korea’s northeastern Gangwon-do Province.
The main fire in the province’s Goseong and Sokcho have been completely put out this evening, some 17 hours after the fire broke out.
But authorities are continuing to work against the clock to put out smaller blazes, while making sure that the flames won’t be reignited tonight.
For more, let’s go over to our Won Jung-hwan who is in Goseong.
Jung-hwan tell us more.
A massive fire have roared along the eastern coast of the country.
And I am now at an elementary school near the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters in Goseong,... where a temporary shelter has been prepared for those who were affected.
As you can see, there are tents and food for them.
More than 3-thousand people were forced from their homes last night,… but because the main fire has been completely put out here in the Goseong area, there are fewer than 100 people now at the shelter.
To update you briefly about the fire,… overnight, it spread to 18 different sites, burning more than 500 hectares of area so far,… and destroying at least 300 houses and buildings.
The authorities are trying figure out the exact cause of the fire,… but as far as we know right now, it might have been a spark from electrical wires.
The fire quickly spread throughout the region, fanned by strong winds and dry air, affecting Goseong, where I am,... as well as Inje, Sokcho and Gangneung.
The main fire near Goseong and Sokcho was put out at around 9:40 in the morning. And more than 80-percent of fire in Inje has been extinguished.
And just a few hours ago, the Gangneung area, where firefighters had had some trouble, they've managed to extinguish it there too
Jung-hwan can we expect the fire to be completely contained by tonight?
The fire in the Gangwon-do province is likely to be put out completely by the end of today because Korea has the biggest firefighting force it's ever deployed working on it.
More than 870 firetrucks and some 13-thousand firefighters are there.
It's been a nationwide mission. The headquarters of all major regions have sent fire trucks -- specifically, half of the available forces of Seoul, Incheon, Daejeon, Gyeonggi-do Province and other regions. And a third of the forces of Busan, Ulsan, South Jeolla-do Province and other areas.
While the fire agency lowered one level now, earlier today they have issued a top level alert, which is for fires that affect the entire nation, reflecting the seriousness of the situation.
But we have to keep watching... because the fires that are left could still grow again.
Also, the landscape in Inje is hilly and mountainous, so it could take time for the firefighters to access the sites.
The top priority for the force is to put out all the fires before the sun goes down, because the strong wind at night could make all their efforts so far for nothing.
That is all from me.
Jung-hwan let’s hope that the winds won’t pick up speed tonight. Thank you for that report, be safe, and keep us posted.
Arirang News Facebook: [ Ссылка ]
