Seoul : Firefighters were scrambling Wednesday to contain a wave of wildfires that tore through the southeastern region and killed at least 24, but strong winds and dry weather have continued to hamper efforts to limit the spread of wildfires.
Scores of firefighting helicopters, about 5,000 personnel, and some 560 pieces of equipment were mobilised, but the wildfires that began in Sancheong County in South Gyeongsang Province last Friday have spread across the region’s northeast.
For five days, the fires have spread to nearby Uiseong and were advancing to neighboring Andong, Cheongsong, Yeongyang and Yeongdeok.
Of the 24 victims from the wildfires, 20 were found in Uiseong and four were from Sancheong as of 4 PM, according to data from the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters.
Police and fire authorities earlier tallied 21 deaths in the northern part of North Gyeongsang Province: two in Andong, three in Cheongsong, six in Yeongyan, and seven in Yeongdeok.
In Yeongyang, four of the five victims were found burned to death on a road at around 11 pm on Tuesday.
So far, the wildfires have destroyed 17,000 hectares of forest and 209 houses and factories, Han said.
