Government Establishes Drought Response Task Force... Mobilizing All Resources for Southern Regions

[Anchor]

The government has decided to actively support the southern regions suffering from a prolonged drought by establishing a new "Drought Response Task Force." It also plans to extend the national firefighting mobilization order for the time being and even deploy military units to mobilize all available resources.

Reporter Yoo Soo-Hwan has the details.

[Reporter]

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced that it has established a "Drought Response Task Force" targeting southern areas experiencing ongoing drought, including South Gyeongsang Province, South Jeolla Province, and Gwangju.

The task force will cooperate with domestic logistics companies to transport all available equipment—such as water trucks, water pumps, and regular pumps—to the southern regions, while also supporting response resources from local governments nationwide.

In addition, the ministry stated that it will inject budgets, such as special disaster and safety grants, into water supply measures to minimize damage for residents in the drought-hit areas.

The national firefighting mobilization order has also been extended.

The National Fire Agency mobilized 100 fire water tanker trucks from across the country to support water supply operations in five cities and counties in South Gyeongsang Province, where agricultural water shortages are at the "serious" stage.

As water poured like a waterfall into the dried-up waterways, farmers could not take their eyes off the scene.

[Jung Chang-baek / Haman-gun, South Gyeongsang Province: Water has been gushing out for about 15 days. It feels like a weight has been lifted off my chest.]

Currently, the reservoir water level in South Gyeongsang Province stands at 32.2%, which has dropped to 45.6% compared to the historical average of 70.6%.

The Navy, Air Force, and Korea Forest Service also plan to step in to support water supplies.

Yesterday (August 13), the Army deployed 15 water supply vehicles and about 40 troops to help resolve the drought in Haman.

[Choi Sung-shik / Commander, Hapcheon-Haman-Uiryeong Battalion, 39th Infantry Division, Republic of Korea Army: These are vehicles used for wartime military operations and CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear) support. The water supply vehicles have been deployed for public support.]

The firefighting authorities plan to review precipitation and reservoir levels to decide whether to lift the national firefighting mobilization order once the drought situation improves.

(Camera Reporter: Jung Kyeong-moon | Video Editor: Yoo Mi-ra)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.