<기사제목>Jungdaebon Activates 'Emergency Level 3' for Crisis Response Due to Nationwide Heavy Rain

[Asia Economy Reporter Woo Su-yeon] As heavy rain poured nationwide, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety raised the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) crisis response level to 'Emergency Level 3' at 3 p.m. on the 2nd.

Among the CDSCH's emergency responses, Level 3 is the highest, and the flood and wind disaster crisis alert, divided into caution, warning, and severe stages, remained at the 'warning' level.

Earlier, from 10 a.m. the previous day, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety activated CDSCH Level 1, and as heavy rain warnings expanded, the level was raised to Level 2 from 1 a.m. on the same day. Later, an emergency inspection meeting was held in the afternoon to raise the response level to Level 3.

As of 4:40 p.m. on the day, heavy rain warnings were issued for Seoul, Incheon, Gyeonggi, Gangwon, northern Chungcheongbuk-do, and northern Gyeongsangbuk-do, with strong rain accompanied by gusts and thunder and lightning.

That morning in Chungju, Chungcheongbuk-do, one firefighter who was moving to the site of a gas explosion caused by a landslide went missing after being swept away by a rapid current, and in Dorimcheon, Seoul, an elderly person in their 80s died in a safety accident. In Hoengseong, Gangwon-do, a house was buried due to soil inflow, injuring a grandmother and her two granddaughters.

With the increase in the crisis alert level, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety requested related ministries and local governments to strengthen emergency work systems and concentrate all possible capabilities to prepare for heavy rain damage.

Minister Jin Young of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety urged, "All ministries and local governments should activate emergency systems and do their best to protect the lives and property of the people."

Minister of the Interior and Safety Jin Young (center) is presiding over an emergency meeting to respond to heavy rain and check damage status at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters in the Government Seoul Office Building on the morning of the 2nd.
[Image source=Yonhap News]