Strong Winds and Dry Weather... Oeseong Wildfire Suppression Faces Difficulties on Second Day

Damage Spreads for Second Day, 5 p.m. Containment Rate at 53%
Wildfire-Affected Area Reaches 4,150 Hectares

Yonhap News

A wildfire that broke out in Uiseong-gun, Gyeongbuk, has been spreading for the second day, increasing the extent of the damage.

According to the Korea Forest Service on the 23rd, the wildfire that started around 11:25 a.m. the previous day at the summit of a hill in Gwaesan-ri, Anpyeong-myeon, has spread eastward to a point 20 km away, driven by strong winds.

The firefighting efforts have been slow due to a combination of factors including strong winds with a maximum speed of 16 m/s, dry weather, and disruptions in the operation of firefighting helicopters caused by thick smoke emitted from the wildfire site.

Even after the wildfire response was raised to level 3, the containment rate of the Uiseong wildfire remained at 3-4% overnight and dropped to 2.0% by 2 a.m. that day. Since the deployment of firefighting helicopters is restricted after sunset, it is uncertain whether the wildfire spread can be maintained at the current level.

The wildfire-affected area counted so far is 4,150 hectares (equivalent to 5,811 soccer fields), nearly 14 times larger than the 300 hectares (420 soccer fields) recorded at 7 p.m. the previous day. The total fire line has extended to 68 km, and firefighting efforts are still ongoing in the 32 km section where the flames have not yet been contained.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters of the Korea Forest Service stated, "We are mobilizing all available resources, including firefighting helicopters and personnel, to focus on extinguishing the main fire."