Seoul City Requests Declaration of Special Disaster Areas for Gaepo 1-dong in Gangnam-gu and Six Other Districts

On the night of the 9th, water accumulated on a road in Irwon-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, causing cars to splash water as they drove. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Tae-min Ryu] On the 16th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it has urgently requested the central government to designate six districts and one neighborhood severely affected by the recent heavy rains as special disaster zones.

The areas requested by Seoul include six districts: Guro, Geumcheon, Yeongdeungpo, Dongjak, Gwanak, Seocho, and Gaepo 1-dong in Gangnam-gu. The city plans to consult with the government to allow designation at the neighborhood level if the damage amount in the districts falls short of the special disaster zone criteria.

Once designated as a special disaster zone, 50 to 80% of the flood recovery costs covered by local government funds will be supported by the central government. Health insurance premiums, communication and electricity fees will also be reduced or waived.

According to the city, the heavy rains caused 19,627 cases of damage across seven districts, with property damage amounting to approximately 94 billion KRW. Gwanak-gu recorded the highest number and amount of damage with 5,654 cases and 21.9 billion KRW. Yeongdeungpo-gu (5,364 cases) and Guro-gu (2,965 cases) followed in terms of damage cases, while Seocho-gu (21.7 billion KRW) and Dongjak-gu (15.3 billion KRW) followed in terms of damage amount.

Han Je-hyun, Deputy Mayor for Administration of Seoul, said, "We hope that the areas severely affected by the flood damage will be promptly designated as special disaster zones, and Seoul will do its best to ensure citizens can return to their daily lives as soon as possible through swift recovery efforts."