22 dead after torrential rain, landslides and floods engulf South Korea

Days of heavy rain in South Korea have left at least 22 people dead and 14 others missing in landslides, floods and other incidents, the government said Saturday.

The 22 fatalities were reported on Friday and Saturday, all in the central and southeastern regions, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety said in a report.

An earlier ministry report on Saturday morning said five people died after landslides caused by torrential downpours buried their houses. Two others also died in landslide-related incidents. But the latest ministry report didn’t explain the cause of deaths for the additional fatalities.

The report said torrential rains have also left 14 people missing since Tuesday, and 13 others injured since Thursday.

South Korea has been pounded by heavy rains since July 9. The ministry report said the rainfall had forced about 4,760 people to evacuate and left thousands of households without electricity in the past seven days. It said more than 2,000 people remained in temporary shelters as of Saturday afternoon.

Also Saturday, 20 flights were canceled, and the country’s regular train service and some of its bullet trains were suspended, the ministry said. It said about 140 roads remained closed.

South Korea’s weather agency said some parts of the country will continue to receive heavy rain until Sunday. President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was visiting Ukraine on Saturday, asked Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to mobilize all available resources to respond to the disaster, according to Yoon’s office.

Central regions received the largest rainfall, with more than 600 millimeters (24 inches) in the city of Gongju and the county of Cheongyang since July 9, respectively.

Last year, the heaviest rainfall in 80 years left nine people dead in Seoul.