Seoul: Three people lost their lives due to heavy rain in the capital region, and more than 20 individuals were temporarily evacuated, authorities reported Wednesday. The downpour began earlier in the day across central areas, prompting heavy rain alerts in Seoul, Incheon, and the provinces of Gyeonggi, Gangwon, and South Chungcheong.
According to Yonhap News Agency, as of 6 p.m., the capital region and northern Gangwon Province experienced rainfall of 20 to 40 millimeters per hour, as reported by the interior ministry. The ongoing heavy rain is expected to persist through Thursday, with the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters predicting up to 200 mm of additional rainfall overnight in the affected areas, which have already been drenched with 100 mm per hour.
The central disaster headquarters elevated its emergency response to Level 2. In Gimpo, west of Seoul, an elderly man was found dead in a car that plunged into a river, as reported by firefighting authorities. In Incheon, a driver in his 40s perished after his vehicle skidded on a wet road and fell into a lake. Meanwhile, in Pocheon, north of Seoul, a woman in her 70s was killed when the car she was in crashed into a traffic light on a slippery road.
Evacuation orders were issued for regions near flood-prone rivers in Seoul and parts of Gyeonggi Province. In northern Gyeonggi, torrential rain left residents stranded and led to the closure of roads and railways. In Incheon and Gyeonggi, 26 people were temporary evacuees, staying in shelters, with one person having returned home.
The Seoul metropolitan area was hit by over 100 mm of rain, with Incheon's Ongjin County experiencing 149.2 mm in just one hour, marking the heaviest downpour of the summer, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). The KMA forecasted torrential rain of 30 to 50 mm through Thursday morning in the central region. Until Thursday, heavy downpours ranging from 50 to 150 mm are expected in the capital region, with Incheon and northern Gyeonggi facing up to 200 mm. Some areas in Gangwon Province may receive up to 150 mm, while central provinces of Chungcheong could see up to 100 mm of rain.