At least 31 killed, 10 missing in South Korea floods

| July 16, 2023

Five bodies of people trapped under a tunnel submerged by heavy rains in central South Korea have been recovered, raising the death toll from widespread flooding to 31.

The five people were found from a bus that has been submerged at a flooded underpass in Cheongju on Saturday after rescue workers began underwater search operations early Sunday, officials said.

The Ministry of Interior and Safety earlier said 26 people have died and 10 were missing as the heavy rains caused landslides and floods across the country, with evacuation covering 7,540 people.

The casualties from the flooded tunnel were not included in the ministry’s data as it was not immediately clear how many people and cars were trapped underwater.

“We are focusing on the search operation as there’s likely more people there,” Seo Jeong-il, head of the west Cheongju fire station, told reporters.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, now on an overseas trip, ordered Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to mobilise all available resources to minimise the casualties, his office said, as more heavy rain was expected on the Korean peninsula on Sunday.

Korea Railroad Corp reported on Saturday that it was halting all slow trains and some bullet trains, while other bullet trains might be delayed due to slower operation as landslides, track flooding and falling rocks threatened safety.

A slow train derailed late on Friday when a landslide threw earth and sand over tracks in North Chungcheong province, the transport ministry said.

The engineer was injured, but no passengers were on board.