Heavy Rain Washes Debris Ashore Along South Coast; Tongyeong City and Coast Guard Rush to Clean Up

Coastal cleanup operations are in full swing along the southern coast of Gyeongsangnam-do, where massive amounts of debris washed ashore in the wake of record-breaking heavy rain that hit on the 17th.

Following the torrential downpours, massive quantities of trash, including buoys, Styrofoam, and vegetation, drifted onto major coastal areas such as the Jukrim shoreline and Gangguan in Tongyeong.

In response, Tongyeong City has mobilized available personnel and equipment, including the cleanup vessel "Ara," two pontoon boats, grab trucks, Maritime Industry Division officials, and temporary workers, to conduct shoreline cleanup operations.

The Ara is tasked with collecting debris accumulated in island areas and transporting it to the mainland.

The collected debris will be promptly disposed of to prevent secondary pollution and minimize marine environmental damage.

"The amount of shoreline debris has increased significantly more than usual due to the heavy downpour," a city official said. "We will thoroughly clean even the blind spots to create a pleasant marine environment."

The Tongyeong Coast Guard has deployed pollution response vessels to the sea, utilizing conveyor-belt style recovery machines to collect floating debris.

On the 19th alone, the amount of debris collected from the waters off Asamaul village in Haksan-myeon, Geoje, reached 2 tons.

"Recovering marine debris and promptly normalizing the livelihoods of maritime workers is also a mission of the Coast Guard," said Ok Hyun-jin, head of the Tongyeong Coast Guard. "We will do our utmost to help citizens return to their peaceful daily lives and safe livelihoods as soon as possible."

(Photo provided by Tongyeong City, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.