Damyang County Secures 123 Billion KRW for Flood Recovery: "Permanent Restoration"

Full-Scale Launch of Climate Crisis-Responsive Recovery System
Comprehensive Restoration of Rivers, Roads, Agricultural, and Livelihood Infrastructure

Damyang County, which secured 123 billion KRW for recovery costs to repair damage caused by the heavy rains in July, is carrying out restoration work on Oryecheon, where the embankment was washed away. Provided by Damyang County

Damyang County in South Jeolla Province (Governor Jeong Cheolwon) announced on October 17 that it has secured 123 billion KRW in recovery funds-the largest amount in the province-to repair the damage caused by the heavy rains in July. The county has begun comprehensive redesigns of rivers, roads, and agricultural infrastructure, in addition to providing livelihood support for affected residents.

The county, which suffered a total of 40.9 billion KRW in damages-22.3 billion KRW to public facilities and 18.6 billion KRW to private property-was designated a special disaster area. Through prompt data entry into the disaster management system (MDMS) and proactive engagement with central government agencies during preliminary investigations, Damyang County succeeded in securing large-scale recovery funds.

The recovery budget consists of 116.7 billion KRW for public facilities and 6.3 billion KRW for private property. Of the public facility recovery funds, 74.5 billion KRW has been allocated to 245 sites managed by Damyang County, 41.2 billion KRW to six sites managed by South Jeolla Province, and 1 billion KRW to four military sites. So far, 21.6 billion KRW (17.5%) has been disbursed. Of this, 8.4 billion KRW in national funds is being used for the restoration of infrastructure such as roads and small rivers, while 7.5 billion KRW in special grants is being directed to emergency recovery areas.

In particular, of the 6.3 billion KRW in disaster relief funds for private property, 5.7 billion KRW has already been distributed to 3,425 households, helping residents recover from damage to homes, businesses, and crops. The county is strengthening transparency in the payment process to ensure fairness among residents and prevent disputes regarding the distribution of relief funds.

The county has set the goal of this recovery effort as "permanent restoration to prevent recurrence of similar damage," and is pursuing disaster-prevention-focused projects. In areas prone to repeated flooding, river cross-sections will be expanded and embankment heights raised to increase water flow capacity by more than 1.5 times. Major rivers will be reinforced with both concrete retaining walls and ecological block slopes to prevent erosion. Additionally, the county will expand the diameter of agricultural drainage pipes, implement automated control systems for pumping stations, and apply dual power supply designs to ensure that major drainage and water intake stations can operate immediately even during power outages.

Furthermore, Damyang County plans to use this recovery process as an opportunity to develop a "Damyang-style disaster management standard model" to address the era of climate crisis. By integrating a smart alert system, support for village-level autonomous disaster prevention teams, and resident disaster safety education, the county aims to establish a system that enables "advance prediction, immediate response, and post-incident improvement."

Governor Jeong Cheolwon emphasized, "This recovery effort is not just about restoring what was lost, but marks the starting point for building a new disaster response system. Thanks to the swift action of village leaders and related public officials, we have secured 123 billion KRW, which will be executed transparently and promptly to help Damyang become a region resilient to disasters. We will focus all administrative resources to achieve this."