Anchor: On day five of efforts to combat wildfires in the country’s southeastern Gyeongsang region, the death toll on Wednesday climbed to 20. Calling the latest wildfires the worst ever in the nation’s history, acting President Han Duck-soo addressed the public, pledging all-out efforts to contain the fires and prevent any more blazes.
Choi You Sun reports.

Report: With wildfires blazing in the southeastern region of Gyeongsang, at least 20 are dead, 19 are injured, and 27 thousand people have been forced to evacuate their homes. 

In an address to the nation on Wednesday, acting President Han Duck-soo said that while the government has mobilized all available personnel and equipment to put out what he called the worst fires in the nation’s history, the situation remains critical.

Han said the massive wildfires that simultaneously broke out on Friday in Sancheong, South Gyeongsang Province, Uiseong, North Gyeongsang Province, and Ulju, Ulsan, have since spread to Andong, Cheongsong, Yeongyang and Yeongdeok.

Saying the damage has reached unprecedented levels, the acting president called for all-out efforts to prevent further wildfires in light of a potential shortage of firefighting resources.

He said after the fires are extinguished, the government will review its wildfire response and prevention measures, while cracking down on illegal incineration in accordance with relevant laws.

At a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters prior to the public address, Han ordered state agencies to prepare for a worst-case scenario and respond accordingly, as the fires are unfolding in a way that defies existing prediction models.

On Wednesday morning around 11 a.m. a body believed to be that of a man in his 80s was found in a house in the city’s Imha area, and the authorities are still searching for his wife.

Amid the ongoing efforts to contain the fires, a firefighting helicopter crashed in Uiseong County, killing the pilot in his 70s, the only person onboard.

According to the Korea Forest Service, the helicopter went down shortly before 1 p.m. while putting out flames on the hills in Uiseong’s Sinpyeong area.
Choi You Sun, KBS World Radio News.