At around 3:26 p.m. on the 21st, a fire broke out in a mountain area in Sicheon-myeon, Sancheong-gun, South Gyeongsang Province, and authorities are currently working to extinguish it.
Currently, as the forest fire spreads, authorities have issued a Level 3 forest fire alert around 6:40 p.m. A Level 3 forest fire alert is issued when winds exceed 7 meters per second, the anticipated damage area exceeds 100 hectares, and it is expected to take over 24 hours to extinguish.
As a result of this forest fire, 115 residents from the nearby Jeomdong and Gukdong villages have evacuated. No casualties have been confirmed so far.
The current extinguishment rate is about 15%. The burned area is approximately 9.5 km long, and the area affected by the forest fire is estimated to be around 120,000 square meters, which is roughly equivalent to 17 standard soccer fields.
As night fell, around 20 helicopters that had been deployed for extinguishment withdrew, while 94 pieces of equipment, including fire trucks, and 539 personnel remain engaged in the firefighting efforts.
The Forest Service is establishing a defensive line between the nearby villages and the mountains to prevent the fire from spreading to residential areas.
However, strong winds at the fire site are reported to be causing difficulties in extinguishing the fire.
A Forest Service official noted, "We aim to complete the primary fire extinguishment by tomorrow morning when winds and air currents are weaker, and we plan to deploy 27 helicopters at sunrise," adding, "We will do our best to minimize casualties and property damage from this forest fire."
Gyeongsangnam-do Governor Park Wan-soo visited the integrated command post for the forest fire established at the Sancheong Pumped Storage Power Plant as the fire spread, and he is overseeing the firefighting response in cooperation with related agencies.
Governor Park said, "Protecting the lives and property of residents is our top priority," and he added, "Above all, we will mobilize all available resources to respond swiftly to ensure that no casualties occur."
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok urgently directed the Ministry of National Defense to do their utmost to mobilize all available equipment and personnel in cooperation with local governments, the Fire Agency, the Ministry of National Defense, and others for the rapid extinguishment of the forest fire.
Deputy Prime Minister Choi urged, "As the forest fire is spreading rapidly, ensure that there are no casualties through thorough evacuation of residents," adding, "Due to sunset, we cannot deploy helicopters, so be mindful of the safety of ground crews while putting forth all efforts for ground extinguishment and ensure thorough preparations to deploy helicopters immediately at sunrise."