Condolences to the friends and family of the victims of this terrible accident in Sokcho:
Three people were killed and three injured as an elevator fell at an apartment construction site in Sokcho, Gangwon Province, Wednesday morning, rescue workers and reports said.
The three were riding in the elevator when it dropped 15 floors to the ground at 8:28 a.m. The fourth also in the elevator survived the fall and was transported to hospital.
The remaining two ― foreign workers from Uzkekistan ― were on the ground and hit by debris when the elevator fell. They were also taken to hospital. All casualties were workers.
It was not immediately known what caused one of the two elevators, installed outside the 30-story building, to fall. Police said that the workers were working to dissemble the elevators.
Korea Times
A rainbow crosses the sky above Sokcho, 213 kilometers east of Seoul, on Oct. 28, 2018. (Yonhap)
A beach on the eastern port of Sokcho is empty on Aug. 13, 2017, as swimming is banned following reports of rip currents for two straight days. (Yonhap)
A handful of vacationers visit a beach in Sokcho, about 210 kilometers northeast of Seoul, on July 7, 2017, as it opens to the public. (Yonhap)
This photo taken on Jan. 6, 2017, shows mountains near the northeastern port city of Sokcho being covered with snow as the region received heavy snowfall overnight, creating postcard scenery. (Yonhap)
I must be one of the few people in the world that has not played Pokemon Go, with that said I can’t imagine myself taking a trip all the way to Sokcho to play a video game:
Smartphone game “Pokemon Go” has become an international sensation after its release on July 6 in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand. Now, Korean fans have found a way to access it.
The game, developed by Niantic, uses GPS and a camera to locate and capture in the real world fictional “pokemons.” The characters originate from the Japanese media franchise Pokemon in 1995.
Korean fans were frustrated when they heard the game might not be available in South Korea.
“Pokemon Go” operates with Google Maps and the Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOILT) has denied Google access to a precise map of the country. Google again requested the map in June and MOILT will decide in August whether to give the information.
But Korean users have found a way to play the game after finding a loophole in the system. Niantic developed a GPS-based game called “Ingress” in 2013. During development, the company gathered GPS information around the globe, including from North Korea. The same data was used in developing “Pokemon Go.”
The data divides countries into diamond cells. Because it categorized areas around Sokcho, Gangwon Province, as a North Korean sector, the game functions in the city’s vicinity.
After the information went viral, buses to Sokcho have been fully booked for the weekend. People who failed to reserve a ticket posted on social media that they will be driving to Sokcho to play “Pokemon Go.”
Sokcho has posted a city map showing free Wi-Fi spots to help Pokemon players who will be visiting this weekend. [Korea Times]
