▲ Residents watch wildfires spreading to a nearby hillside in Andong, about 190 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on March 25, 2025. (Yonhap)
▲ This photo shows fires in parts of a village in Uiseong County, some 180 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on March 25, 2025. (Yonhap)
▲ Cultural heritages in Gounsa Temple, an ancient temple in Uiseong, about 180 kilometers southeast of Seoul, are moved to other locations as wildfires spread into the region on March 24, 2025, in this photo provided by the Korea Heritage Service. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

(3rd LD) wildfires-Uiseong

(3rd LD) Ancient temple destroyed; citizens in Andong advised to evacuate as wildfires spread

(ATTN: ADDS more details in paras 5-6)

SEOUL, March 25 (Yonhap) -- Wildfires ravaging South Korea's southeastern region forced more residents to evacuate Tuesday, as firefighting authorities struggled to contain the rapidly spreading blazes that destroyed a centuries-old temple.

The fires that began in Sancheong County in the southeast on Friday have spread to nearby Uiseong, and were advancing to neighboring Andong, Cheongsong, Yeongyang and Yeongdeok, in the central area of North Gyeongsang Province, firefighting officials said.

The engulfing flames destroyed Gounsa Temple in Uiseong, an ancient temple built in A.D. 681 during the Silla Dynasty (57 B.C.-A.D. 935). National treasures stored in the temple had been relocated to other locations.

Authorities said the UNESCO-listed Hahoe Folk Village in Andong was at risk of being engulfed by the fires and were mobilizing all resources to protect it from destruction.

The justice ministry said it was transferring some 2,600 inmates from a correctional facility in the Gyeongbuk Northern Prison in Cheongsong by bus to nearby prisons as the wildfires were spreading fast around the region.

It was also reviewing the transfer of inmates from the prison in Andong holding about 800 prisoners.

Acting President Han Duck-soo instructed regional governments to mobilize "all available administrative resources" to evacuate residents from wildfire-hit areas to safe locations.

He ordered relevant authorities to deploy all equipment and personnel to contain the wildfires as quickly as possible.

The National Fire Agency said it raised the emergency response level by one notch to the highest, "Level 3."

The blazes, fueled by strong and dry winds, burned more than 14,000 acres of woodland across the region since the fires broke out, forcing thousands of people, including all Andong residents, to evacuate from their homes.

More than 3,000 firefighters and dozens of helicopters and vehicles were deployed to fight the blazes.

Since Friday, the military has deployed some 5,000 service members and 146 helicopters to help combat wildfires raging in South Korea's southeastern region since last week,

Six people, including four firefighters, have been killed in the fire in Sancheong, with a dozen other people sustaining injuries.

Train services and highway traffic in the southeastern region were suspended as of Tuesday afternoon, state railway and highway operators said.

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