"Crawling to Work in Torrential Rain... Traffic Jams Across Seoul"

Rising Han River Water Levels Lead to Partial Closure of Dongbu Expressway and Olympic-daero
Three Lanes Closed on Incheon 2nd Ring Expressway Due to Landslide
Landslide Warnings Issued in Seoul's Jungnang, Gangbuk, Nowon, and Dobong Districts

On the 11th, during the continued heavy rain in the central region, vehicles on their way to work were crawling like turtles on the Hangang Bridge in Seoul. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] "The rain was pouring so heavily that I couldn't see ahead, and what usually takes 15 minutes by car from Gongdeok to Hannam-dong took me a crawling 40 minutes."

"I knew the roads would be blocked, so I left earlier than usual and transferred to the subway, but even though I received an umbrella just 2 minutes from the subway exit to the office, my clothes and shoes all got soaked. It was a disaster."

Heavy rain poured over Seoul and the metropolitan area, causing severe traffic congestion on the morning commute as roads were blocked in many places. The water level of the Han River rose significantly due to overnight flooding, and the heavy rain during rush hour caused great inconvenience to citizens.

According to the Seoul Traffic Information Center, from early dawn on the 11th, all entrance ramps on the entire Dongbu Expressway and the Yeoui upstream and downstream interchanges on Olympic-daero were closed. Due to continuous heavy rain in Seoul and northern Gyeonggi Province since the previous day, the water level at Wolgye 1 Bridge on Jungnangcheon exceeded the vehicle control level of 15.83m, and the water level at Hangang Bridge also exceeded the control standard of 4.4m, prompting these measures.

Additionally, due to flooding, Yangjaecheon Bridge, Yeongdong 1 Bridge, Sacheon Bridge, and the underpasses of Jeungsan Bridge were completely closed. Vehicle traffic was also fully banned on the underpass of Gaehwa Yukkapmun, the southern underpass of Banghwa Bridge, the section from beside Seongsan Bridge south end to Yangpyeong Interchange, the underpass of Shindong-A Shopping Center under Dongjak Bridge, and Dangsan-ro 52-gil (from the south end of Dangsan Railway Bridge to Dangsan Underpass). The Jamsu Bridge has been restricted for ten days since the 2nd of this month.

As a result, between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. during the morning commute, vehicles repeatedly stopped and went on sections such as Olympic-daero from Cheonho south end to Jamsil south end, Dongjak south end to Seongsu south end, and Gangbyeonbuk-ro from Hannam north end to Dongjak north end. Traffic congestion continued on the Seobu Expressway as well, taking over 30 minutes from Gocheok Bridge to the Seongsan Bridge junction.

The Dongbu Expressway and Yeoui upstream interchange reopened to traffic at 9 a.m., but the Dangsan Underpass, both directions of Yangpyeong Interchange, and the Gimpo-bound direction of Sincheon Interchange remain restricted.

In Incheon, where a heavy rain warning was issued, a landslide near Namcheongra IC on the Incheon-Gimpo section of the Metropolitan Area 2nd Ring Expressway (Incheon-Gimpo Expressway) caused a complete halt of vehicle traffic on three lanes heading from Incheon to Gimpo. The police secured one lane of the three around 7:50 a.m. to guide traffic, but severe congestion occurred due to the heavy volume of vehicles during the morning commute.

On the 11th, during the ongoing rainy season, office workers are heading to work with umbrellas at the Sejongno intersection in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

Due to the weakened ground from heavy rain, landslide warnings were issued consecutively in northeastern districts of Seoul such as Jungnang, Gangbuk, Nowon, and Dobong. Each local government sent disaster alert messages to residents, urging caution against landslide damage and advising evacuation to safe areas in case of emergencies.

From 6 p.m. the previous day to 6 a.m. on the day, the 12-hour rainfall was highest in Seongdong-gu at 78.5mm in Seoul. Over the three days from the 8th to the 10th, Dobong-gu recorded the highest rainfall at 217.5mm. The Korea Meteorological Administration expects an additional 45 to 80mm of rain in Seoul on this day.

Meanwhile, due to the ongoing monsoon lasting 49 days, from the 1st of this month until now, nationwide casualties include 31 deaths, 11 missing persons, and 8 injured. Across 11 cities and provinces, 4,349 households comprising 7,512 people have been displaced, and over 20,800 cases of damage to roads, bridges, houses, vinyl greenhouses, and farmland have been reported.

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