Torrential rains hit several parts of South Korea; residents evacuated

Seoul, July 17 (IANS) Torrential rains slammed South Korea's Chungcheong provinces, causing flooding and residents' evacuation, with two people who were trapped in a landslide in the region rescued, according to authorities on Thursday.

As a rain front showed signs of moving northward, the government's disaster response authorities put the Chungcheong provinces and the southern part of Gyeonggi Province on the second-highest alert level.

Since Wednesday evening, as much as 344 mm of rain has fallen in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, the hardest-hit area, according to weather officials.

In Seosan, 114.9 mm of rain fell in just one hour between 1:46 a.m. and 2:46 a.m., recording the highest hourly rainfall for July since observations began there in 1968, reports Yonhap news agency.

Heavy rain triggered a landslide in Cheongyang, South Chungcheong Province, leaving two residents briefly trapped before being rescued.

Fire authorities said the two were transported to a nearby hospital. They reportedly sustained leg injuries but were not in any life-threatening condition.

In the city of Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, 67.4 mm of rain fell per hour, marking the second-highest rainfall.

As of 7 a.m. Thursday, 26 emergency text alerts for heavy rain were issued nationwide via mobile phones, among which 25 were for the Chungcheong area.

The KMA issues such alerts when hourly rainfall exceeds 50 mm and three-hour cumulative rainfall tops 90 mm, or when one-hour rainfall alone surpasses 72 mm.

More rain is expected to pound the country until Saturday.

Around 50 to 150 mm of rain is expected in the greater Seoul area and Chungcheong Province, 30 to 100 mm in North Jeolla Province, and 20 to 80 mm in Gwangju and South Jeolla Provinces until Friday.

The southern regions are also forecast to receive heavy rainfall starting Friday, with areas like Ulsan and Busan expected to experience between 100 and 200 mm of rain.

--IANS

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