This rescue team They fought to reach the public on Sunday stranded in a flooded tunnel At least 37 people died and nine went missing after heavy rains triggered floods and landslides in South Korea.
South Korea is at the height of the summer monsoon season and in the last four days heavy rain caused a major dam to overflow.
The Interior Ministry reported that 37 people were killed and nine missing across the country due to the heavy downpour. Most of the victims were residents of North Gyeongsang province.
Hundreds of rescuers followed Struggle to reach more than 10 vehicles An unknown number of people were trapped in a 430-metre underground tunnel in Cheongju, north Chungcheong province, the ministry said.
Rescuers were trying to rescue him when AFP arrived on the scene on Sunday. drainage tunnel to reach the victims, but the water still seemed too deep, making the search difficult.
According to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, an underground tunnel flooded Saturday morning, and rising waters prevented people inside from escaping.
evacuation
there were five people rescued from the bus The Interior Ministry said nine bodies were removed from the tunnel and the area on Saturday, and divers were working day and night to search for more victims.
Police have received reports of the disappearance of 11 people believed to be in the tunnel, but the exact number is not yet known. last official figure Yonhap reported as it was not clear how many people were in each car.
Footage broadcast on local television showed that as rescuers struggled to use boats to reach people inside, violent water from a nearby river overflowed its shores and flooded the tunnel.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who is on a trip abroad, emergency meeting He, along with his aides, is about the government’s response to heavy rains and floods, his office reported. Earlier, he instructed Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to mobilize all available resources to minimize casualties.
“All houses have been swept,” one rescue worker told Yonhap in the worst-affected areas.
Authorities ordered the evacuation of more than 6,400 residents of Goesan county on Saturday morning, as the dam threatened to overflow and flood nearby towns.
The rains also caused rail service to be suspended from 14:00 pm (0500 GMT), with the exception of high-speed trains that will continue to operate with possible timetable adjustments, according to the Korean Railways Authority.