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Rain and cooler temperatures help South Korean fire crews when they fight against the country’s worst wildfires on Friday, as the governor of the hardest hit region has asked for reaction strategies to be renovated to respond to the climate crisis that he believes has worsened the disaster.
The wildfires, which killed 28 people and destroyed large parts of land in the southeast over the past week, were 85% contained from Friday morning, Korea Forest Service chief Lim Sang-Seop told a television briefing. He said the authorities would launch ‘overall efforts’ to extinguish the remaining flames by bringing more helicopters and firefighters to the areas.
The outraged inferno also destroyed thousands of houses, factories, vehicles and other structures, while mountains and hills of all but a carpet smoldering ashes were stripped.
“The wagons were reduced due to the rain last night, so it is favorable to ensure visibility. The temperature is also lower than the last few days, so things are very favorable to put out the wildfires,” Lim said.
Firefighters in their 60s, a reflection of one of the world’s fastest outdated population-have been navigating forests in yellow helmets and red protective suits and spraying oppressors from flames flashing near their feet. Helicopters dropped buckets of water over hills that glow red at night.
Residents put in temporary shelters in places such as schools and gyms, but the fire also crawled dangerously near some of them. A video shared by one evacuation shows flames approaching a school football field under a sky, choking with smoke.
“I just kept crying this morning,” 79-year-old Seo Jae branch, an evacuation in a gym in Andong City, said Thursday. “When I went back yesterday, the whole mountain turned to ashes. It’s just incredible, I can’t even put it in words. All I can do is cry. ‘
Authorities mobilize about 9,000 people, 125 helicopters and hundreds of other vehicles to fight the wildfires, the government’s disaster response center said.
The wildfires burned 47,860 hectares (118.265 hectares) of land, forced more than 30,000 people to flee from their homes and injured 37 others since last Friday. Officials said on Friday that 8,000 residents remained at temporary shelters. The fires were powered by strong winds and dry weather.
Although it is difficult to link any climate change event, officials and experts say that it makes wildfires more likely and more serious. Scientists have already warned that the warm atmosphere around the world is driving more and more extreme weather events, including wildfires, floods, droughts, hurricanes and heat waves that kill people and damage billions of dollars every year.
Lee Cheol-Woo, governor of North Gyeongsang Province, said at a news conference: “We must fully review our strategy for the response of the wildfire to extreme climatic conditions.
Lee noted that the past week showed how wildfires, fueled by dry and windy conditions, could quickly overwhelm the country’s resources. He said he would request that the government set up better evacuation guidelines, adopt more powerful firefighting equipment, including aircraft equipped with water cannons, and used other approaches to improve firefighting during the night hours.
“We do not have firefighting equipment at night,” Lee said. “At night, firefighting is only done with hand efforts, but with the increased density of our forests compared to the past, it’s hard to manage with it.”
Lee Han-Kyung, Deputy Chief of the Ramp Response Center, told a meeting on Thursday that the wildfires ‘show the reality of the climate crisis we have ever experienced’, according to the Yonhap news agency.
The people who died were mostly in their 60s or older. This includes a pilot whose helicopter crashed during attempts to contain a fire on Wednesday and four firefighters and other workers who died earlier after being trapped by quickly moving flames. Officials say older people find it difficult to evacuate quickly, but have not given details about the civilian dead.
In Uiseong, about 20 of the 30 structures burned at the Gunsa Temple Complex, which was allegedly built in the 7th century. Among them, two “treasures” were named: a pavilion overlooking a stream dating back to 1668, and a Joseon dynasty structure built in 1904 to celebrate the long life of a king.
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Associated Press -video journalist Yong Jun Chang in Andong, South Korea contributed to this report.
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