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| ▲ This photo, provided by the Korea Forest Service, shows smoke plumes coming from a mountain in the southern county of Hadong on April 7, 2025. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
(LEAD) wildfire-Hadong
(LEAD) Some residents in Hadong advised to evacuate as wildfire spreads
(ATTN: UPDATES throughout, acting interior minister's remarks; RECASTS headline, dateline, lead para)
HADONG, South Korea/SEOUL, April 7 (Yonhap) -- Residents of several villages in the southern county of Hadong were advised to evacuate to safe locations Monday, as firefighters battled to contain a wildfire in the region, according to authorities.
The fire erupted on a mountain in Hadong, some 290 kilometers southeast of Seoul, at 12:05 p.m., according to the Korea Forest Service.
Hadong is one of the regions devastated by the nation's worst wildfires that were contained late last month.
The Korea Forest Service mobilized 21 firefighting helicopters and 397 personnel to put out the latest wildfire that has scorched some 47 hectares of land.
A man in his 70s was taken to a hospital with burns on both hands after attempting to put out the fire himself, according to the forest service.
Authorities suspect the man started the fire while working with a turf cutter, and plan to look into the exact cause of the blaze after it is extinguished.
In Seoul, acting Interior Minister Ko Ki-dong urged relevant authorities to make all-out efforts to put out the wildfire as early as possible.
"Make sure to have residents at risk from the fires swiftly take shelter and establish fire lines in advance to prevent any casualties," Ko told a disaster response meeting.
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