Flood Recovery Urgent, but Heatwave Hits: "Lifting Shovels Is Suffocatingly Hot"

[Anchor]

Geoje and Tongyeong in South Gyeongsang Province are still in the middle of intense flood recovery work. Residents and workers say the unrelenting heatwave is making the process even more grueling.

KNN reporter Jeong Hyo-jung has the story.

[Reporter]

Under the scorching sun, recovery efforts are in full swing.

Workers shovel away mud and carry wooden boards one by one.

A week has passed since the torrential rain, but the site is facing even greater hardships due to the heatwave.

[Lee Soon-ja / President, Gyeongnam Volunteer Association: The weather is so hot and it is so difficult. It is tough, I feel dizzy, and it is absolute agony.]

With heatwave warnings even issued, the pace of work continues to slow down.

[Kim Yong-bae / Worker: It is very difficult. It is tough, and lifting a shovel like this makes the weather hot enough to take your breath away.]

At a sea squirt seed culture facility where the entire setup was submerged in rainwater, there is still no telling when operations will return to normal despite ongoing recovery efforts.

To prevent anyone from collapsing in the heat, recovery work is being carried out in shifts.

Amid the midday heatwave, the indoor temperature inside the aquaculture farm has risen close to 40°C (104°F).

Even in this scorching field, volunteers continue their recovery work.

Tongyeong, where only Sanyang-eup and Bongpyeong-dong have been declared special disaster zones, faces even greater difficulties.

With recovery relying solely on private efforts, progress is slow.

[Ahn Sook-yeon / Docheon-dong, Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province: It would be nice if they designated it (as a special disaster zone), but it seems they won't do it just for our single household, which is a bit disappointing.]

Soldiers who stepped up for damage recovery instead of military training, armed with strong stamina, are having just as hard a time.

[Lee Seung-jin / Company Commander, Subordinate Battalion, 39th Infantry Division: There is no way there is no burden. We are proceeding by having some groups rest while other personnel work.]

The emergency recovery rates in Geoje and Tongyeong remain in the 70% range, which is still far from sufficient to return to daily life.

With recovery delayed by the heatwave following heavy rain, the inconvenience and heartache of affected residents are growing day by day.

(Video by Ahn Myung-hwan / KNN)

Jeong Hyo-jung, KNN

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