Condolences to the friends and family of the ROK Marine killed this week during flood rescue operations:
Rescue workers carry the body of a marine to an ambulance in Yecheon on July 19, 2023. He went missing earlier in the day after being swept away by a torrent while participating in search and rescue operations in the area. (Yonhap)
Rescue workers on Wednesday found the body of a marine who went missing after being swept away by a torrent in a southeastern county while participating in search and rescue (SAR) operations after heavy monsoon rains and landslides in the area.
The marine corporal, serving with the 1st Marine Infantry Division, disappeared into the Naeseong stream rapids in Yecheon County, North Gyeongsang Province, 161 kilometers southeast of Seoul, at about 9:10 a.m. during SAR operations, ROK Marine Corps officials said.
His body was discovered downstream at around 11:08 p.m.
Market flooded due to heavy rain This photo contributed by a reader shows a resident waiting to be rescued from a market flooded by heavy rain in the southeastern county of Hadong on Aug. 8, 2020. (Yonhap)
Fire authorities work on drainage as torrential rain flooded a residential area in Seogwipo, a city on the southernmost island of Jeju, on June 30, 2018. Weather authorities have issued a downpour warning for most of the island, except for some parts in the west. (Yonhap)
It doesn’t appear to be an asymmetric attack like the North Koreans have done before, but instead just a response to the heavy rains that have hit the peninsula:
North Korea discharged water from a dam near the border with South Korea Wednesday, prompting the South to evacuate border-area residents for fears of flooding.
“It seems that North Korea discharged water from Hwanggang Dam at around 6 a.m.,” a South Korean military official said. “North Korea opened the floodgates of the dam bit by bit from early morning.”
The North did not notify the South of the dam water discharge in advance despite their previous agreement to do so, the official said.
Still, Seoul ruled out the possibility that the sudden water release has anything to do with flooding attacks, he added.
The water level at the North Korean dam had been detected to have risen to full capacity with the area having massive rainfalls in recent weeks.
Six South Koreans were killed in September 2009 after North Korea released a massive amount of water from the border dam without prior warning. [Yonhap]
This is a horrible tragedy for the unit involved in this accident at Ft. Hood. With that said there had to be some serious lack of risk assessment and leadership to allow something like this to happen:
A motorist passes through a low-water crossing near New Braunfels, Texas, on Thursday, June 2, 2016. ERIC GAY/AP
Five soldiers were killed and four were missing after an Army troop carrier was washed from a low-water crossing and overturned Thursday in a rain-swollen creek at Fort Hood, the Texas Army post said.
Three soldiers were found dead shortly after the 2½-ton truck was toppled by the swift current of Owl Creek during a morning training exercise. Two more bodies were found late Thursday night, according to a Fort Hood statement. Three soldiers were rescued and were hospitalized in stable condition.
No further details were provided in the statement, but spokesman Chris Haug said the search continued for the four soldiers who remain missing. Army officials planned a briefing early Friday to provide an update. [Stars & Stripes]
You can read more at the link, but hopefully they can find the four missing soldiers. It is just amazing the amount of bad things that seem to happen at Ft. Hood.
This is something the North Koreans have done before and will continue to do again in the future:
Residents in border areas in Gyeonggi saw an unexpected flood Monday night apparently because North Korea’s unannounced release of water from its border-area dam increased the inflow of water to the South from 97 tons per second at 6 p.m. to 428 tons per second by 9 p.m.
According to the Paju city government and Korea Water Resources Corporation, the inflow of water from across the border at the upper stream of Imjin River, where water levels are controlled by the Gunnam Dam. The inflow of water hit 515 tons per second by 4 a.m. Tuesday, from which point it began to gradually subdue.
Officials view the dramatic increase of water inflow as a direct result of the North’s unexpected release of water from its Hwanggang Dam, located about 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) north of the military demarcation line, as there had been no rainfall in recent days in the area.
Facing the sudden increase in water levels, the Gunnam Dam increased the amount of water it released to 427 tons per second at 1 a.m. from 116 tons per second at 7 p.m. The increased level of water was a problem for fishermen who make their living along the Imjin River, as their fishing nets were damaged or lost in the flood. [Joong Ang Ilbo]
An underground water pipe measuring 1,000 milimeters in diameter bursts in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, on Jan. 31, 2015, flooding the area for hours. (Yonhap)
