At least 24 people were killed and thousands forced to evacuate their homes as a series of deadly wildfires, which the country’s acting president described as its worst ever, spread through South Korea’s southeastern region on Wednesday.
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Aside from killing 24 people, the fires, which started late last week before expanding quickly, forced at least 27,000 others to evacuate from their homes, the Associated Press reported.
Fire officials said at least 26 people have been injured by the fire, which has also destroyed at least 200 structures, including a 1,300-year-old Buddhist temple.
According to South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency, “scores” of firefighting helicopters and around 5,000 firefighters have been deployed to tackle the blazes, however, efforts to contain the blazes have been hampered by strong winds and dry weather.
The country’s acting President Han Duck-soo delivered a televised address on Wednesday and said: “We are confronting the worst wildfires in our history using all available personnel and equipment, but the situation is not looking good.”
Among the people killed in the blaze is the pilot, who was killed after his firefighting helicopter crashed into the mountains in South Korea’s Uiseong county, one of the worst-hit regions.
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17,000 hectares (42,000 acres). That is the total area across the country that has been burned by the wildfires so far, Han said in his address.