Gangneung Ok-gye Wildfire Spreads to East Coast Driven by Strong Winds... Roads Closed in Several Areas

500ha Burned in Donghae, 60ha and 4 Houses Burned in Gangneung Ok-gye... One Resident in Their 80s Dead

Wildfire Observed by Cheollian Satellite [Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ra Young-cheol] The wildfire that broke out in Ok-gye, Gangneung, is rapidly spreading to Donghae.

According to the forestry and fire authorities on the 5th, the wildfire is spreading toward Mangsang, Bugok, Balhan, and Dongho-dong in Donghae, driven by strong winds blowing in the direction of the East Coast.

Donghae City has issued an evacuation order to residents in the affected areas and urged them to close the windows of apartments and houses.

As of 2 p.m. that day, it was reported that 500 hectares in Donghae, 60 hectares in Ok-gye, Gangneung, and four houses were burned.

A woman identified as A (86 years old) who was injured while evacuating due to the wildfire in Ok-gye was transported to the hospital but passed away.

Most roads, including the highway, National Route 7, and coastal roads, were also closed.

The road authorities began a full closure of the 14.9 km section from Ok-gye Interchange to Donghae Interchange on the Donghae Expressway starting at 8 a.m. that day.

KORAIL suspended all operations on the Donghae?Gangneung KTX section from 12 noon that day due to the wildfire spreading from Gangneung to the Donghae area.

Accordingly, the departure and arrival stations of KTX trains running between Seoul Cheongnyangni and Donghae were changed to Gangneung Station.

KORAIL also suspended the Donghae?Gangneung shuttle Mugunghwa train service, and the regional headquarters staff entered emergency duty.

Currently, dry weather warnings and strong wind advisories are in effect in Gangneung and Donghae.

The forestry authorities are currently deploying 16 helicopters and about 2,000 personnel to extinguish the fire.

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