North Korea Illegally Releases Water from Hwanggang Dam Three Times... Ministry of Unification Says "No Prior Notice"

"Political Deadlock Preventing Cooperation on Natural Disasters Is Unfortunate"

Hwanggang Dam, North Korea

The Ministry of Unification announced on the 4th that North Korea opened the sluice gates of the Hwanggang Dam on the upper Imjin River three times since July and discharged water without prior notification.

Unauthorized discharge from the Hwanggang Dam, which has a total storage capacity of 350 million tons, can cause fishermen's fishing gear installed on the Imjin River to be washed away, as well as result in casualties.

A Ministry of Unification official told reporters on the same day in response to questions about the opening of the Hwanggang Dam sluice gates, "It has been confirmed that North Korea discharged water three times from July this year until the day before."

Regarding prior notification, the official stated, "North Korea did not provide any prior notification to our side when opening the sluice gates."

Previously, in September 2009, North Korea discharged water from the Hwanggang Dam without notice, which led to the deaths of six residents in Yeoncheon-gun, Gyeonggi Province. Following this, in October of the same year, during inter-Korean working-level talks on flood prevention for the Imjin River, North Korea agreed to provide prior notification to the South before discharging water from the Hwanggang Dam.

The official emphasized the government's stance on North Korea violating the agreement, saying, "The government holds the position that inter-Korean agreements must be strictly implemented."

He added, "Once inter-Korean relations are restored, we will actively promote cooperation between the South and North in the fields of disaster and calamity," and said, "It is unfortunate that due to the current political and military cooling phase, cooperation on natural disasters is not taking place."

Ri Yeong-nam, Deputy Director of the North Korean Meteorological and Hydrological Bureau (Meteorological Agency), appeared on Korean Central TV on the 2nd and stated, "It is predicted that the rainy season front will merge with a low-pressure trough, bringing even heavier rain accompanied by heavy downpours." According to the broadcast, currently in North Korea, more than 200mm of heavy rain is falling in the southern regions of Hwanghae Province and the mountainous areas of North Pyongan Province.

The government is closely monitoring the possibility of flood damage caused by the opening of the Hwanggang Dam.

A Ministry of Unification official explained, "As of 7 a.m. on the 4th, the water level at Pilsunggyo on our side is 2.99 meters, which is not a concerning level," and added, "The government is operating a thorough response system by closely cooperating with various agencies and sharing information on the situation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.