Typhoon Lingling kills 3 in S. Korea, ravages farms and facilities nationwide

Posted on : 2019-09-09 17:48 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
Winds speeds fifth most powerful in nation’s recorded history  
Kim Geun-cheol
Kim Geun-cheol

Three people died and over 20 were injured across South Korea when Typhoon Lingling, the 13th tropical storm of the season, struck the Korean Peninsula on Sept. 7. The situation was compounded as emergency recovery efforts launched the following day on Sunday were hampered by nationwide rains. Predictions of up to 150mm of rainfall on Jeju through Sept. 9 are raising fears of additional damage.

 South Jeolla Province
South Jeolla Province

According to explanations on Sept. 8 from the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters and the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), very strong winds occurred nationwide on Sept. 7 as Lingling moved northward along the West Sea coast. On Heuksan Island in Sinan County, South Jeolla Province, instantaneous wind speeds exceeded to 54.4m per second – the second fastest recorded for the island and the fifth fastest measured for any South Korean typhoon to date.

Arriving with record-high wind speeds, the typhoon was responsible for three deaths nationwide. In Boryeong, South Chungcheong Province, a 75-year-old identified by the initial J died after being thrown by heavy winds while inspecting the roof of a farm equipment shed. In Incheon, a 39-year-old bus driver identified by the initial K was crushed when strong winds knocked over a wall in a parking garage at the rear entrance of Inha University Hospital. In Paju, Gyeonggi Province, a 61-year-old identified by the initial M was fatally struck in the head when winds took off a section of the roof of a golf course building that M was repairing. Across South Korea, a total of 12 resident injuries were reported, along with 11 injuries to firefighters and police officers enforcing safety measures.

The storm also caused damage to buildings and infrastructure, with reports of damage to over 3,600 structures including 928 privately owned structures and 2,714 public facilities such as schools and roads. In South Jeolla and Jeju, 35 boats were overturned by heavy winds. A total of 161,646 households across South Korea were inconvenienced by power outages, including the entire island of Ganghwa in Incheon (over 21,000 households).

With the Chuseok (fall harvest) holiday approaching, heavy wind damage to crops is causing woes for farmers. As of Sept. 8, the area of crop damage was tentatively calculated at 7,145 hectares (ha). Rice stalks were felled over an area totaling 4,253ha, while 1,735ha of paddy land was inundated. Orchard losses of apples, pears, and other fruit totaled 1,157ha, with another 42ha of vinyl greenhouse damage calculated.

Full-scale recovery efforts were launched on Sept. 8 in Gyeonggi Province, which bore the brunt of damage. Power was restored for 33,604 households, representing 98% of the 34,280 affected. Gyeonggi Province plans to determine the exact extent of typhoon damage with local surveys of the human toll and facility damage through Sept. 27, while minimizing losses through pre-payment of relief funds and disaster assistance funds to affected individuals. In a countermeasure meeting presided over by Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon at 4 pm that day, the central government discussed emergency recovery and recovery support measures.

Damage to N. Korea

Various damages also occurred in North Korea as Lingling continued northward. According to official announcements by the North, a total of five deaths and three injuries resulting from the typhoon were reported as of Sept. 8. In a report that afternoon, the Korean Central News Agency said, “According to figures assembled by the national emergency disaster committee to date, five people have died and another three are being treated for injuries in hospitals.”

“Across the country, over 460 homes in 210 buildings and 15 public structures have been either partially or totally destroyed or inundated,” the report said.

“Crops were toppled, inundated, or buried over more than 46,200 chongbo [approximately 458 square kilometers] of farmland,” it added. The damage is believed to have been exacerbated as the typhoon passed through Hwanghae Province, one of North Korea’s chief breadbasket regions.

According to the KMA, Typhoon Lingling dissipated into an extratropical cyclone approximately 160km northwest of Vladivostok around 9 am on Sept. 8. As of Sept. 9, heavy winds accompanied by thunder and lightning were occurring around Jeju Island and southern South Korea, with upwards of 150mm of rainfall forecast in mountainous areas.

By Park Kyung-man, North Gyeonggi correspondent, Song In-geol, Daejeon correspondent, Jung Dae-ha, Gwangju correspondent, and Choi Ye-rin and Noh Ji-won, staff reporters

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