A wildfire that swept through an eastern coastal area of South Korea was yet to be contained by Saturday.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters estimated that about 16,755 hectares of forests were destroyed as of Monday morning. The scorched area is more than a quarter of the capital Seoul and equivalent to the size of 23,466 soccer fields.
Forced by the wind, the blaze rapidly spread north to Gangwon-do Province on March 4, then headed south the next day, jeopardizing Uljin County where the Hanul Nuclear Power Plant is located.
The massive fire has burnt down houses and forced thousands to flee their homes. Affected villagers are currently in temporary shelters and still suffering from the shock of the disaster.
"I fled from home upon hearing people shouting (warning about the fire), and I left everything at home. I'm still wearing the same clothes in which I left the building, and I've been wearing them for three consecutive days without washing them, as there is no water," said a local surnamed Ohn.
Ohn returned to his house trying to find some reusable items after the disaster, but there's nothing left.
Though the government is taking care of the displaced, the villagers are still worried about their future.
"Even after new houses are built, we still need resettlement before leading a normal life. Now we are wearing only the clothes we have on us. Though we are lucky enough to have escaped from the fire, everything else has been burned away," said a local resident surnamed Lee.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Saturday urged the mobilization of all available resources to prevent the fire from further spreading to nearby areas.
South Korea has just experienced the driest winter in 50 years, making it very difficult to extinguish wildfires, according to the central fire prevention department.
(Cover image: Wildfire burns on a mountain in Uljin, South Korea, March 5, 2022.)
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