Noh Hyo-dong (R), a Yonhap correspondent in Washington, poses with U.S. Ambassador to Seoul Mark Lippert during an award ceremony for the Don Oberdorfer Prize at the American Center Korea in Seoul on Oct. 4, 2016. Noh became the first recipient of the prize which was initiated this year to honor the late Oberdorfer, a former Washington Post journalist and foreign affairs expert best known in South Korea for his influential best-seller “The Two Koreas.” (Yonhap)
Typhoon Chaba struck South Korea pretty hard causing a handful of deaths and missing people. Â I don’t mean to make light of the people who died or missing but scrambling on to your roof, hanging out at a construction site or trying to tie down your fishing boat are not activities I recommend in the middle of a major typhoon:
Vehicles are submerged in a parking lot near the Taehwa River in Ulsan Wednesday as the river flooded due to the impact of Typhoon Chaba, which headed toward Japan later. [NEWSIS]Typhoon Chaba slammed through southern cities Wednesday morning, killing at least four people, paralyzing flights and trains and knocking out power for a few hours.
According to the Ministry of Public Safety and Security, 1,183 hectares of farmland was flooded in South Jeolla, 950 cars get trapped in water in Ulsan and Jeju, and some 210,000 houses lost power in Jeju, South Jeolla and South Gyeongsang.
The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) issued typhoon warnings in Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang regions from 6:30 a.m. Wednesday, as the tropical storm that passed through Jeju Island Tuesday approached. The maximum wind speed reached 115 kilometers per hour (71 miles per hour) on Wednesday afternoon.
According to authorities, four people died and two went missing on Wednesday.
According to Busan police, a 90-year-old woman fell from the rooftop of her house in Mangmi-dong due to strong winds and died. A 59-year-old construction worker died when he was crushed by a falling crane at a construction site at Kosin University. A 56-year-old surnamed Heo, who was reportedly checking whether his boat was fastened to a breakwater in Daehang-dong, was swept away by waves and later found dead.
A resident of Ulsan was found dead some 60 meters (197 feet) from his apartment entrance, and a rescue worker in Ulsan and a fisherman in Jeju went missing, according to local authorities. Â [Joong Ang Ilbo]
If you live on the southern coast of South Korea it is best to take precautions for the flooding that Typhoon Chaba is likely to bring:
Typhoon Chaba will threaten lives and property across mainland Japan and South Korea this week after lashing the Ryukyu Islands on Monday night.
Chaba reached super-typhoon status, strengthening to the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane, on Monday afternoon, local time. Chaba has since weakened below super-typhoon status, but residents of Japan and South Korea should not let their guard down.
Powerful winds, torrential rain and rough seas around Chaba’s center will pose significant danger to shipping interests across the East China Sea, Korea Strait and Sea of Japan through Wednesday night.
Residents of southern mainland Japan and southern South Korea need to prepare for Chaba to make a direct hit or pass dangerously close on Tuesday night into Wednesday. Â [AccuWeather]
It looks like there could be some serious gridlock if the subway workers strike as planned to stop the implementing of performance based pay:
The Korean Public Service and Transport Workers’ Union will enter an all-out strike from today, while metros in Seoul and Busan also announced a strike from today, which comes as worrying news for many commuters who fear they may have to contend with nationwide paralyzed underground and railroad traffic.
The announcement on Monday heralds the first time in 22 years that the transport workers’ union and public metro companies in Seoul decided to hold a simultaneous strike.
The transport workers’ strikes follow a general strike by the Korean Financial Industry Union since Friday, and will be followed by another from Korean Health and Medical Workers’ Union on Wednesday and by the Federation of Korean Trade Unions and Korean Confederation of Trade Unions on Thursday.
The unions are protesting the central government’s plan to extend the performance-based salary system to more employees of public companies and organizations.  [Joong Ang Ilbo]
I really can’t blame South Koreans for wanting their own nuclear deterrent considering the threat they are facing on a daily basis from the Kim regime:
Nearly 60 percent of South Koreans support the country’s development of its own nuclear weapons, a poll showed Friday, amid the rising calls among hawkish lawmakers for Seoul to consider the aggressive option to curb Pyongyang’s provocations.
According to the data compiled by pollster Gallup Korea, 58 percent of the respondents agreed with South Korea’s nuclear armament scenario, while 34 percent expressed an opposition. The study was conducted on 1,010 South Koreans throughout the country this week. Â [Yonhap]
With all the recent major crimes being committed on Jeju island some resident want to see the visa waiver program ended to better ensure public safety:
In line with the rise, the number of foreign tourists who commit crimes at one of the country’s most popular tourist sites has also increased.
The Jeju Provincial Police Agency said 347 foreign offenders have been arrested on Jeju as of July. The figure is up by nearly 60 percent from the number tallied in the same period last year, which stood at 218.
Among the 347 foreigners, Chinese nationals accounted for the largest proportion of offenders with 240, or 69.2 percent, followed by Americans with 13.
Reflecting such trends, calls to beef up security by local residents have been rising.
More than 14,500 people have signed a petition filed at a bulletin board of local Internet portal Daum as of Tuesday since it was first proposed on Sunday.
“The country’s precious island of Jeju has turned into a lawless zone with Chinese tourists who enter without visas,” the netizen who first proposed the petition said. “The safety of South Koreans should be given top priority than what can be earned from tourism.” Â [Yonhap]
In 2002, Guus Hiddink coached the South Korean football team. In 2016, Guus Hiddink Quantum Energy System™ bum patches are finally available pic.twitter.com/903P7R3KYd
Considering how South Korea faces constant threats of nuclear annihilation from the North, it would be interesting to see what China’s complaints would be against a South Korean nuclear deterrent when they have done nothing to stop North Korea:
South Korea’s ruling and opposition parties on Wednesday continued to debate over whether Seoul should consider its own nuclear armament as an option to defend the country amid escalating tension on the Korean Peninsula sparked by Pyongyang’s provocations.
Following North Korea’s launch of submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) as well as its fifth nuclear test, a rising number of hawkish lawmakers, mainly from the ruling Saenuri Party, claimed that South Korea must consider developing its own nuclear weapon.
“We need to consider every option, including deploying tactical nuclear weapons, developing our own nukes, striking North Korea’s related facilities, and demolishing Kim Jong-un’s regime,” Rep. Lee Cheol-woo of Saenuri said during an interpellation session held at the National Assembly.
“South Korea should not delay the move in fear of international sanctions or possible discord with China. This is a chance to conclude North Korea’s nuke issue once and for all,” Lee added. Â [Yonhap]
![Vehicles are submerged in a parking lot near the Taehwa River in Ulsan Wednesday as the river flooded due to the impact of Typhoon Chaba, which headed toward Japan later. [NEWSIS]](https://i0.wp.com/pds.joins.com/jmnet/koreajoongangdaily/_data/photo/2016/10/05202738.jpg?resize=320%2C441)
