SEOUL: South Korea ordered people living near rivers in its central region to evacuate homes on Thursday (Jul 18) as heavy monsoon showers dumped more than 300mm of rain, while warnings went out across a large swathe of the country, including the capital.
The rain caused the cancellation of more than 24 flights at the Incheon international airport on the west coast, and also disrupted train services in Seoul, emergency authorities said.
The government was watching for sudden surges in rivers flowing from North Korea, urging vigilance against any landmines planted at the border by its neighbour that could get washed downstream.
South Korea’s military has said it could not rule out the chance that the North planted more mines in recent weeks, fully aware of the likelihood of heavy rain.
“We’re monitoring the water level in the main rivers shared by the South and the North in real time,” a military spokesman, Lee Chang-hyun, told a briefing.
