Moon declares 7 special disaster zones as 17 people died from flood
CGTN
A couple looks at flodded Han River park in Seoul, the Republic of Korea (ROK), on August 4, 2020. /Reuters

A couple looks at flodded Han River park in Seoul, the Republic of Korea (ROK), on August 4, 2020. /Reuters

President Moon Jae-in on Friday declared seven cities and counties in central of Republic of Korea (ROK) devastated by recent torrential rains as special disaster zones, the presidential office said, making them eligible for state support in their disaster recovery efforts.

According to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the government has singled out the seven special disaster zones after conducting emergency on-site damage inspection for three days, far shorter than the usual two-week period, in order to expand state support for the disaster-battered areas as soon as possible.

Tents erected in a school gym in Anseong of Gyeonggi Province, one of the seven special disaster zones, provided shelter on Wednesday for some families among more than 1,000 people made homeless by landslides and floods.

Relief workers checked people's temperatures and screened for any COVID-19 symptoms in the shelter, and displaced residents were asked to wear masks and wash their hands.

Other special zones include Cheorwon of Gangwon Province; Chungju, Jecheon and Eumseong of North Chungcheong Province; and Cheonan and Asan of South Chungcheong Province.

A health worker sanitizes the floor of a makeshift shelter for people displaced by flood at a gym in Ansung, the Republic of Korea, August 5, 2020. /Reuters

A health worker sanitizes the floor of a makeshift shelter for people displaced by flood at a gym in Ansung, the Republic of Korea, August 5, 2020. /Reuters

The unprecedented heavy rain and flooding mark the longest monsoon of this country in seven years. According to the government data, it has left 17 people dead, and 10 others missing, displaced some 2,500 people, and destroyed about 6,200 buildings.

"The government plans to conduct further on-site inspections to additionally declare other areas that meet certain conditions as the special disaster zones," Yoon Jae-kwan, deputy spokesperson of the presidential office, said in a media briefing.

The declaration of special disaster zones will allow the central government to spend state money to support 50 to 80 percent of the expenditures needed for damage recovery.

The move will also permit residents who suffered flood damage to receive state support in livelihood costs and reductions in utility bills, health insurance premiums, and other public charges, as well as exemptions from reserve forces training and other military duties.

Meanwhile, the torrential rains have flooded hundreds of houses and vast agricultural land areas in the neighboring Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), reported by its state media.

Unification Ministry spokeswoman Cho Hyesil said that Seoul maintains its policy to push for humanitarian cooperation with its neighbor on issues that are not political such as natural disasters. She said Seoul is monitoring flood damage in DPRK without providing further details about aids.

(With input from agencies)