Wildfire in Hallim-myeon, Gimhae Spreads Overnight ... Upgraded to Level 2 Wildfire Alert

Wildfire site in Hallim-myeon, Gimhae-si, Gyeongnam. Provided by Korea Forest Service

The Korea Forest Service has raised the wildfire response level to Level 2 as the wildfire in Hallim-myeon, Gimhae-si, Gyeongnam, continued to spread overnight.

As of 7 a.m. on the 23rd, the second day of the fire, the Korea Forest Service issued Level 2 and is working to extinguish the fire by deploying four firefighting helicopters, 228 personnel, and 35 vehicles at sunrise.

The affected area, which was 22.42 hectares the previous day, has expanded to about 70 hectares, and the total length of the fire has increased from 2.4 km to 3.44 km. The containment rate has dropped from 50% to 20%.

Level 2 is declared by the head of the Korea Forest Service when the expected damage area is between 50 and 100 hectares and the fire is expected to be contained within two days.

On site, winds are blowing at 1.2 m/s, with a temperature of 5.2 degrees Celsius and humidity at 70%.

Due to the fire, 148 residents from 98 households in nearby villages have evacuated to Sannajeon Village Hall and Hanajeon Village Hall, and no casualties have been reported so far.

The wildfire in Hallim-myeon, Gimhae, started at around 2:03 p.m. on the 22nd, and the cause has been identified as waste incineration.

The Central Disaster Response Headquarters of the Korea Forest Service stated, "We focused on overnight firefighting operations to prevent the wildfire from spreading, and at sunrise, we plan to mobilize all available aerial and ground resources, including firefighting helicopters, to extinguish the main fire."