South Korean officials say at least 14 people have died and several others are missing after torrential rains that began earlier in the week triggered landslides and destroyed homes in the country.
Relentless rain in South Korea has left at least 14 dead and 12 others missing, authorities said Sunday.
An Interior and Safety Ministry report said southern regions received around 24-31 inches (600-800 millimeters) of rain since Wednesday.
What do we know about impacted regions?
The town of Sancheong in the south of the country recorded eight deaths after heavy downpours caused landslides. Six others were still missing in the region, after flash floods destroyed homes in the area.
In Gapyeong, a town northeast of Seoul, one person was killed on Sunday after their house collapsed. Another person was found dead after being swept by a swollen stream in the town.
But the dayslong deluge of rain finally subsided Sunday, with rain having stopped in most of the country. Heavy rain alerts have been subsequently lifted throughout the country, ministry officials said.
When did rains begin?
Heavy rainfall began this Wednesday, steadily forcing more people to evacuate their homes, with 3,840 having evacuated as of Sunday. Flights were also canceled.
Earlier this week, three people were found dead in a submerged car, and a person was also killed when their car was buried by soil and concrete after a retaining wall of an overpass collapsed in Osan, just south of Seoul, during heavy rain.
South Korea usually sees monsoon rains in July. However, this year the country has seen more intense rains. Official weather data this year show that the country saw some of the heaviest rainfall per hour on record.
Scientists say climate change is responsible for making such weather events both more frequent and more extreme. In 2022, heavy rains and flooding in South Korea left at least 11 people dead.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar
DW News
