Wildfires in South Korea have now become the largest on record, surpassing previous blazes in scale, as the death toll has risen to 26, according to the country’s disaster chief.
Lee Han-kyung, the head of the disaster and safety division, stated on Thursday, “The wildfire is spreading rapidly. The damage to the forest has reached 35,810 hectares, already exceeding the area affected by the 2000 East Coast wildfire, which was the largest previously recorded, by more than 10,000 hectares.”
The fatalities include a pilot whose helicopter crashed while attempting to contain the flames, as well as four firefighters and other workers who were trapped by the fast-moving fire, driven by strong winds.
Authorities have not released detailed information about the civilian victims, but they have confirmed that most of the deceased are in their 60s and 70s. They suspect that human error contributed to the start of several of the wildfires, which began last Friday, including incidents where fires were ignited during efforts to clear overgrown grass from family tombs or by sparks from welding activities.
As of Thursday morning, authorities have mobilized more than 9,000 people and approximately 120 helicopters to combat the fires.
“Damages are snowballing,” Acting President Han Duck-soo said in a televised address on Wednesday. “There are concerns that we may face wildfire damages we’ve never experienced before, so we must focus all our resources on extinguishing these fires this week.”
The areas hardest hit by the wildfires include Andong City, the surrounding counties of Uiseong and Sancheong, and the city of Ulsan.
