The simultaneous large forest fires that occurred in the Yeongnam region have resulted in the most extensive damage to communication company base stations and wired networks in history.
According to the National Assembly and authorities on the 28th, as of 7 a.m. that day, fires and power outages occurred at 2,879 base stations installed in areas such as Gyeongbuk Uiseong, Andong, Yeongdeok, and Gyeongnam Sancheong, where the damage from the forest fires is concentrated. This is the largest scale of base station disruption due to disasters in history. Of these, the recovery rate was analyzed to be 82.6%.
A total of 19,972 cases of disruptions were reported in paid communication services, including general and internet telephone services from KT, LG Uplus, SK Broadband, and LG HelloVision. Among these, 11,772 lines were restored, resulting in a recovery rate of 94.0%. In paid broadcasting, 19,249 cases reported damage from LG HelloVision, KT HCN, and Seo Kyeong Broadcasting, with 92.7% recovering. It was determined that there were no damages to digital services, including data centers and platform services, in the forest fire areas.
The Ministry of Science and ICT is responding to the damage with communication service providers by receiving reports on the damage status of communication facilities every 24 hours and at 4-hour intervals. As of the 27th, 6 mobile base stations, 1 temporary base station, 38 power generators, 211 portable generators, and 771 on-site recovery personnel have been deployed.