'Uljin Wildfire Faces Difficulties Due to "Capricious Wind"... Gangneung and Donghae Wildfires 95% Contained'

Uljin Wildfire Focuses on 'Main Fire Suppression' with Full Deployment of Available Personnel and Equipment
Gangneung and Donghae Wildfires Undergo Main Fire Suppression in the Morning Followed by Mop-Up
Yeongwol Wildfire Faces Helicopter Shortage... Suppression Rate at 70%

Uljin·Samcheok Wildfire [Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ra Young-cheol] It has been five days since the wildfire broke out in Uljin, Gyeongbuk, but difficulties in extinguishing the main fire still persist.

According to the forestry and fire authorities on the 8th, the Uljin wildfire's containment rate remains at 50% due to constantly changing wind directions.

The total wildfire area, including Uljin and Samcheok, reaches approximately 17,600 hectares (equivalent to 25,000 soccer fields).

The authorities plan to mobilize all available helicopters and personnel to focus on extinguishing the most intense flames and concentrate all efforts on controlling the main fire.

However, considering the wind direction, they plan to carry out localized firefighting through selective concentration.

In particular, although the wildfire spread to part of the boundary of the Geumgang Pine forest cluster early this morning, it is reported that extinguishing will be completed by noon.

Wildfire Suppression at Baekbokryeong, Donghae City [Yonhap News]

The wildfires in Gangneung and Donghae, ongoing for four days, show a 95% containment rate.

The authorities plan to deploy 11 helicopters and about 1,500 personnel today to complete extinguishing the main fire by noon and then move on to extinguishing the remaining flames.

Currently, a dry weather warning is in effect in the Gangneung and Donghae areas. Winds are blowing at 1 to 2 meters per second, which is reported to pose no significant difficulties for firefighting.

The Gangneung and Donghae wildfires have destroyed 4,400 hectares of forest (equivalent to 5,600 soccer fields) and damaged about 100 buildings.

Approximately 40 evacuees have been identified and are staying at a temporary shelter set up at the Korea National Railway Corporation Mangsan Training Center.

Yeongwol Wildfire Site [Yonhap News]

The Yeongwol wildfire shows a 70% containment rate on the fourth day since it started.

The containment rate of the Yeongwol wildfire is similar to the situation on the 4th, when the fire broke out, due to a shortage of firefighting helicopters.

As multiple wildfires occurred simultaneously, firefighting helicopters repeatedly moved to the most critical areas and were redeployed, resulting in slow containment.

Meanwhile, President Moon Jae-in declared Gangneung City and Donghae City in Gangwon Province as special disaster zones today, following Uljin in Gyeongbuk and Samcheok in Gangwon.

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