At least 40 people have been killed in South Korea after heavy rains triggered widespread flooding and landslides across the country over the weekend.
The disasters have prompted calls by President Yoon Seok-yul to “overhaul” how the country copes with extreme weather caused by climate change.
On Monday, the nation was reeling from a tunnel tragedy where at least 13 people died in their vehicles after they got stuck in flood waters.
The full death toll is not yet known.
But on Monday, responders were still working to drain the 685-meter-long (2,247-foot) tunnel in the central city of Cheongju – with divers deployed to retrieve victims.
At least 15 vehicles, including a bus, got stuck in the underpass on Saturday, when floodwaters rushed in from a nearby bursting river bank.
Nine have survived so far. Meanwhile, families of the missing waited anxiously for information at a local hospital.
“I have no hope but I can’t give up,” a parent of one of those who went missing in the tunnel told JEE News.
“It breaks my heart to think how painful it must have been for my son in the cold water.”
Elsewhere, at least 19 people were killed in the mountainous North Gyeongsang region of central South Korea when mudslides swept away houses.
About 6,400 residents were evacuated Saturday morning after Gusan Dam in northern Chungcheong overflowed.
Several low-lying villages near the dam and several roads connecting them were inundated, trapping some residents in their homes.
One of those residents, Song Do-ho, told JEE News he had never seen so much rain this weekend.
He said the water was up to his waist when rescue workers came for him, along with his wife, who has back problems, in the middle of the night.
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t scared when the water was coming. I could have died,” said the 87-year-old.
South Korea is experiencing one of its heaviest summer monsoons on record, with torrential rains over the past week causing flooding, landslides and power outages across the country.
More heavy rain is expected this week – with rain forecast until Wednesday.
South Korean President Yoon Seok-yul vowed on Monday to “completely revise” how the country responds to such extreme weather events.
“Such extreme weather events will become the norm. We must accept that climate change is happening and deal with it,” he said before visiting flood-hit North Gyeongsang province on Monday.
He also said that many lives have been lost due to lack of proper management in flood affected areas.
In Cheongju, where the tunnel flooded, victims’ families criticized local authorities for not closing access to the tunnel earlier, when flood warnings were already in place.
President Yun has ordered a military deployment to deal with the aftermath of heavy rains across the country. He also announced the designation of hard-hit areas as “Special Disaster Zones” eligible for state assistance.
As of Monday morning, at least nine people were still missing after flooding over the weekend, officials said.
