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SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea is battling some of its worst wildfires on record, fueled by strong winds across the southern regions. As of Wednesday, the blazes have claimed 24 lives, destroyed over 200 buildings, and forced the evacuation of 27,000 people, authorities reported.
Among the fatalities was a pilot who died in a helicopter crash while combating the fires in Uiseong, a hard-hit town in the southeast. He was the sole occupant of the aircraft. The National Fire Agency reported that at least 26 others have sustained injuries of varying severity.
The government’s emergency response center stated that the wildfires have consumed 43,330 acres, destroying structures including an ancient Buddhist temple, homes, factories, and vehicles.
In a televised address, acting President Han Duck-soo stated that the wildfires, which began last Friday, are causing more extensive damage than previous incidents.
“Damages are snowballing,” Han said. “There are concerns that we’ll have wildfire damages that we’ve never experienced, so we have to concentrate all our capabilities to put out the wildfires in the rest of this week.”
Han noted that strong winds have hampered firefighting efforts overnight. He said that approximately 4,650 firefighters, soldiers, and other personnel were working to extinguish the blazes on Wednesday, supported by around 130 helicopters. He also mentioned the expectation of “a small amount” of 5-10 millimeters of rain on Thursday.
Observers have noted that these wildfires are the third largest in South Korea based on the amount of land burned.
Officials in several southeastern cities and towns issued evacuation orders on Tuesday as firefighters struggled against multiple blazes intensified by dry winds. According to the Interior Ministry, the most significant fires were in Andong, the adjacent counties of Uiseong and Sancheong, and the city of Ulsan.
Earlier on Tuesday, officials had indicated that firefighters had largely extinguished the largest fires in those regions, but the wind and dry conditions caused them to reignite. Efforts were partially halted overnight due to the increased wind speeds.
In Uiseong, the fire destroyed nearly half of the 30+ structures at Gounsa Temple, believed to have been originally constructed in the 7th century. Among the destroyed buildings were two state-designated “treasures”: a pavilion-like structure erected on a stream in 1668 and a Joseon Dynasty building built in 1904 to commemorate a king’s longevity.
Another state-designated “treasure” at the temple, an 8th-century stone Buddha statue, was safely evacuated, according to government and Buddhist officials.
The Justice Ministry reported the precautionary relocation of 500 inmates from a detention center in Cheongsong, another southern town, although the facility itself sustained no damage.
On Tuesday, the Korea Forest Service raised its wildfire warning to the highest “serious” level nationwide, mandating increased emergency response staffing by local governments, stricter forest and park entry restrictions, and recommendations for military units to suspend live-fire exercises.
The deceased include four firefighters and government workers who were killed in Sancheong on Saturday after being trapped by rapidly spreading flames driven by strong winds, officials stated.
Government officials suspect that human error is the cause of several fires, potentially due to the use of fire while clearing overgrown grass around family tombs or sparks generated by welding activities.