At least 8 die in South Korea as record rain swamps Seoul
- Some parts of the South Korean capital received more than 140mm of rain overnight – the most in 80 years, according to local meteorologists
- Three of the victims drowned in a basement home in southern Seoul. Another stepped into electrified waters and one person was crushed by a bus stop
The southern part of Seoul received more than 100mm (3.9 inches) of rain per hour late on Monday, with some parts of the city receiving 141.5mm of rain, the worst rainfall in 80 years, according to local media citing the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). Another 300-350mm of rain is forecast to fall through Thursday, the KMA said, adding to the risks of more flooding.
Dramatic images shared on social media showed people wading through waist-deep water, subway stations overflowing, and cars half-submerged in Seoul’s glitzy Gangnam district after torrential rain battered the city.
President Yoon Suk-yeol on Tuesday visited a semi-basement apartment where three family members had died the night before after swift moving floodwaters filled the space.
The dangers of such underground flats, called banjiha, were famously depicted in a flooding scene in the 2020 Oscar-winning film Parasite.
Yoon told the area’s residents he would try to ensure their lives returned to normal as quickly as possible, and he instructed officials to look at measures to better ensure housing safety, according to a statement from his office.
At least five people had died in Seoul and three others in the neighbouring Gyeonggi province by early Tuesday, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters said.
Four, including the three family members, had died after being drowned in flooded buildings, one was believed to have been electrocuted, another person was found under the wreckage of a bus stop, and the others two died in a landslide, it said.
