Roads Reopened, But Up to 200mm of Rain Expected Through Tomorrow

[Anchor]

Heavy rain of nearly 150mm fell across the Seoul metropolitan area overnight. While heavy rain warnings remain in effect in parts of Gangwon Province, traffic on major roads in Seoul, which had been blocked, has now fully resumed. We connect to our reporter stationed at Jungnangcheon Stream.

Reporter Kwon Min-kyu, what is the situation there now?

[Reporter]

I am at Jungnangcheon Stream, overlooking the Dongbu Expressway in Seoul.

As the rain that poured overnight has stopped, vehicle traffic has resumed.

However, as you can see behind me, the water level of the stream remains high.

As of 6:00 a.m. today (July 18), areas such as Yangchon-eup in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, recorded 148.5mm of rain, and Gangseo-gu in Seoul recorded 135.5mm, with up to 150mm of heavy rain falling across the metropolitan area overnight.

Due to this, flood warnings were issued for areas including Gangseo-gu and Eunpyeong-gu in Seoul.

Concerned about flood damage, the Seoul Metropolitan Government completely restricted traffic in both directions on the Dongbu Expressway, from Surak Underpass to Seongsu Junction, starting at 4:47 a.m.

As the rainfall weakened, traffic on the Dongbu Expressway resumed at 9:45 a.m., about five hours later, and all road restrictions in the Seoul area have now been lifted.

[Anchor]

Please tell us about the damage across the country and the forecast for upcoming rain.

[Reporter]

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety reported that as of 11:00 a.m. today, 872 cases of property damage, including flooded homes and roads, rockfalls, and fallen trees, have occurred nationwide.

While 162 people in 17 regions were temporarily evacuated due to concerns over landslides and flooding, no casualties from the heavy rain have been reported so far.

While heavy rain warnings for the metropolitan area have all been lifted, a heavy rain advisory remains in effect only for Gangwon Province across the country.

Meanwhile, the Korea Forest Service upgraded the landslide crisis alert for the metropolitan area to the third level, "Alert," as of 6:00 a.m. today, and a landslide advisory was also issued for Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul.

The Korea Meteorological Administration advised that up to 200mm or more of strong, heavy rain could fall, mainly in the metropolitan area and Gangwon Province, through tomorrow, Sunday, and urged the public to be extra cautious regarding safety accidents such as low-lying area flooding and landslides.

(Video reporting: Lim Dong-guk, Kim Han-gyeol | Video editing: Lee So-young)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.