[Report] "Just Finished Recovering from Damage"... Munheung-dong and Sinan-dong in Gwangju Flooded Again

186mm Downpour Hits Overnight
Another Heavy Rain Floods Shops Up to 30cm in Just Two Weeks
Damage Snowballs Right Before Businesses Reopen
"Calls for Support Systems Like Compensation and Loans"

On the morning of the 4th, temporary workers were sweeping away rainwater and soil around Munheungdong Catholic Church in Bukgu, Gwangju. Photo by Min Chanki

"We had just barely finished recovering from last month's torrential rain damage, and now we're flooded again. When will we be able to do business?"

On the morning of August 4, around the area of Munheung-dong Catholic Church in Buk-gu, Gwangju. This area experienced 'extreme heavy rain' with more than 80mm per hour falling late the previous night. After the floodwaters from the extreme rainfall receded, the area was left covered in mud.

Temporary workers dispatched from the district office began sweeping the mud to one side of the road using water trucks from early dawn. Water continued to back up from a nearby sewer, and although the workers tried to remove the mud and trash with shovels, it was not enough.

Local residents said, "When it rains, the water gathers at the underpass right in front of us and it quickly becomes submerged. Children also use this path, and we are worried that someone might get swept away by the current and get hurt."

In fact, even on July 17, when more than 400mm of rain fell in Gwangju, this underpass was submerged, and a car was flooded, with the driver barely rescued by authorities.

With another sudden downpour in just two weeks, water rose to about 30cm in surrounding shops, leaving business owners feeling helpless.

Gong Kyungsook (43), who runs a restaurant nearby, spent the entire night draining water from her shop after the heavy rain began late the previous night, unable to sleep at all. This restaurant had been flooded up to an adult man's chest during last month's heavy rain, and had just finished repainting and interior work, preparing to reopen the next day. But with the heavy rain falling just one day before reopening, water again rose up to her ankles inside the shop, and the damage continued to snowball.

Gong said, "I managed to drain all the water from the shop by staying up all night, but the weather is so unpredictable and I don't know when it will rain again, so I'm worried about whether I can operate the business normally." She added, "Five years ago, I also suffered severe damage from flooding, but the authorities keep repeating that drainage construction is still ongoing, and I can't understand why nothing has changed."

On the morning of the 4th, waste materials resulting from flood damage are piled up in the parking lot of Starbucks in Sinan-dong, Buk-gu, Gwangju. Photo by Min Chanki

A similar situation unfolded around the same time in the Sinan-dong area of Buk-gu.

The Starbucks in Sinan-dong, whose first floor was completely submerged during last month's heavy rain, was still undergoing restoration. Waste from flood damage was piled up in the parking lot, and the floor was covered in mud. The store was planning to bring in new furniture and reopen within the week, but another round of heavy rain delayed the interior work, according to a construction company official.

In shops around the area, water rose up to 30cm inside due to the rain that fell the previous day. Residents spent the entire morning scooping out water and mud from their shops, and materials damaged by flooding were scattered throughout the corridors.

On the morning of the 4th, a merchant is sweeping rainwater in front of his store in the Sinan-dong area of Buk-gu, Gwangju. Photo by Min Chanki

Outside the shops, the sidewalks were littered with trash washed out by the rain, and fallen leaves piled up in the sewers. Shop owners worked up a sweat sweeping water away from their entrances with squeegees.

Park Inbi (45), who runs a youth employment center, heard the weather forecast the previous day and stacked sandbags at the entrance to block the water, but it was not enough. The rain that fell at dawn quickly overflowed the sandbags and panels, flooding the inside of the shop. Park's center had already suffered damage from the first heavy rain last month, with restoration costs for the floor and wallpaper alone totaling about 30 million won.

Park said, "All the shops in this area suffered flood damage, but Buk-gu, Gwangju has been excluded from the special disaster zone, so we don't know if we'll receive proper compensation." She added, "This is a chronic flood zone, but out of more than 10 shops, only one has flood insurance. Even that one was rejected by the insurance company and only managed to get coverage with support from the district office. If the building owner knew about the risk of flooding, shouldn't they have taken out flood insurance in advance?"

As repeated damage threatens the livelihoods of small business owners, there have been calls for proper compensation and support systems such as loans to be put in place.

Han Jinyoung, who runs a child development research center nearby, said, "We had just finished the interior repairs from the first heavy rain the day before yesterday and were planning to resume classes today, but we had to cancel again." She explained, "The students are leaving, and with no idea when we can reopen, we're just paying rent."

She continued, "The district office isn't even accepting applications for the second round of damage, and the compensation for the first round was just a drop in the bucket compared to the actual losses. I tried to get a loan to keep the business running, but there are no loans available. Every time it rains, the shop gets flooded, and it's becoming traumatic."

From the night before, Gwangju was hit by a deluge of 186.7mm of rain. Considering the average monthly rainfall is 326.4mm, more than half a month's worth of rain fell in a single day.

The Korea Meteorological Administration forecasted that Gwangju and South Jeolla Province would receive another 10 to 60mm of rain by August 5, with more than 80mm expected in eastern South Jeolla Province.