Day 4 of East Coast Wildfires... Government Pushes to Expand Special Disaster Zones

Samcheok and Uljin Followed by Gangneung and Donghae: Additional Declarations Planned Considering Damage
Tax and Various Fee Reductions with Special Disaster Area Designation... Support for Facility Restoration

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Additional areas affected by wildfires on the East Coast will be declared special disaster zones.

On the 7th, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety stated, "In addition to Samcheok and Uljin, which have already been declared special disaster zones, we plan to promptly proceed with additional declarations for affected areas such as Gangneung and Donghae, considering the overall damage situation through a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters."

As wildfire damage continues nationwide, related ministries including the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, National Fire Agency, and National Police Agency will jointly issue a public appeal in the afternoon, urging citizens to participate in spring wildfire prevention. Minister Jeon Hae-cheol of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety said, "We will do our best to ensure that residents affected by the large wildfires, who are deeply shocked, can return to their daily lives as soon as possible and that those staying in temporary shelters do not experience inconvenience," adding, "The entire government will actively respond to prompt recovery and restoration."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

For special disaster zones, in addition to the 17 benefits such as exemptions from national tax payments and local tax reductions provided to general disaster zones, 12 additional benefits are offered, including reductions in health insurance, electricity, telecommunications, city gas, and local heating fees. The central government will support restoration costs for damages to private facilities such as those caused by death, injury, or total destruction of homes, as well as public facilities, easing the financial burden on local governments. For affected residents, indirect support one-stop services will be additionally provided, including disaster relief funds for livelihood support and reductions in various taxes and public utility fees such as electricity charges.

So far, the government has declared special disaster zones three times due to large wildfires: the East Coast wildfires in April 2000, the Yangyang wildfires in April 2005, and the Gangwon East Coast wildfires in April 2019. The recent declarations for Uljin in Gyeongbuk and Samcheok in Gangwon mark the fourth time in history.

The Gangwon Federation of Business and the Donghae Federation of Business issued a statement the day before, strongly criticizing the government for declaring only Uljin and Samcheok as special disaster zones despite wildfires occurring on the 4th in Uljin, Samcheok, Donghae, Gangneung, and Yeongwol, saying, "We strongly condemn the government's differential treatment of the same disaster," and requested additional declarations for the three areas including Donghae. In 2019, five areas in Gangwon Province?Goseong County, Sokcho City, Donghae City, Gangneung City, and Inje County?were declared special disaster zones.

Meanwhile, major companies such as Samsung Group (30 billion KRW from 8 affiliates), Hyundai Motor Group (5 billion KRW), SK Group (2 billion KRW), and Lotte Group (500 million KRW), as well as celebrities including Lee Byung-hun, Song Kang-ho, and Lee Je-hoon (each donating 100 million KRW), are continuing to contribute donations to support wildfire victims in the Gangwon and Gyeongbuk regions.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

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