The worst wind-torn wildfire in South Korea’s history has destroyed southern regions, killed 18 people, destroyed more than 200 structures and forced 27,000 people to be evacuated, officials said Wednesday.
South Korean Prime Minister and acting president Han Dak Soo said the five-day fire caused “unprecedented damage” and asked the disaster-taking agencies “estimate a worst-case scenario and respond accordingly.”
The helicopter crashed during an effort to contain wildfires in towns to the southeast, killing pilots and forcing the South Korean Forest Service to halt helicopter operations across the country.
Officials from Andong and other southeastern cities and towns ordered residents to be evacuated on Tuesday as firefighters struggled to contain multiple flames fueled by dry winds, burning 17,400 hectares (43,000 acres) of land and destroying hundreds of structures, including a 1,300-year-old Buddhist temple.
More than 5,500 people have been forced to evacuate their homes, neighboring counties of Ushong and Sancheong, and Ulsan, where fires are the largest city, according to South Korea’s Ministry of Home Affairs and Safety.
South Korean officials on Tuesday said firefighters had wiped out most of the flames from the biggest wildfires in those areas, but the ongoing dry, windy weather caused a recession, allowing the flames to spread again.
“Only 68% of people who have suffered from strong winds show “unusual” scale and speed,” said Lee Byung-do, a forest disaster expert at the National Institute of Forest Science.
Climate change is predicted to make wildfires more frequent, Lee said. “We must allow large wildfires to rise and more resources and talent to be prepared,” he told local television stations.
With over 130 helicopters and hundreds of vehicles, around 9,000 firefighters were deployed to fight the fire, but efforts were stopped all night as the winds strengthened.
Officials from Andong and Uiseong County have ordered people near Andong University to evacuate to some villages and to temporary shelters, including schools and indoor gyms, as a fire that began at Useong.
According to officials at Korean Heritage Services, the Uiseong flame destroyed Gounsa, a Buddhist temple built in the 7th century. There were no immediate reports of injuries, and some of the temple’s national treasures, including stone Buddha statues, were evacuated before the fire reached the wooden building.
The fire also spread to the nearby coastal town of Yongdaeok, where authorities closed the roads and ordered residents of at least four villages to evacuate. The Justice Department did not immediately confirm local reports that the local report began relocating 2,600 inmates from the Cheongsong County jail near Uiseong.
Human-induced climate collapse is likely to cause fires in southern Europe, northern Eurasia, the US and Australia, with some scientific evidence of an increase in southern China, causing greater burn areas.
The climate collapse has led to an average increase in wildfire seasons around two weeks worldwide.
Reuters and the Associated Press
