On the 28th, factory buildings damaged by a forest fire are visible in Namhu Industrial Complex, Andong, Gyeongbuk. /Courtesy of News1

From the 21st, it was reported that the areas affected by the large and medium-sized wildfires occurring in 11 locations, including Gyeongnam, Gyeongbuk, Ulsan, Jeonbuk, and Chungbuk, reached around 80% of the area of Seoul. In January of this year, Los Angeles (LA), United States, experienced significant damage due to wildfires, and the area damaged by the wildfire in Uiseong is about twice that of the LA wildfire.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters stated that as of 5 a.m. on the 28th, the wildfire-affected areas in Uiseong, Andong, Yeongdeok, Yeongyang, Cheongsong in Gyeongbuk, Sancheong, Hadong, Gimhae in Gyeongnam, Muju in Jeonbuk, Okcheon in Chungbuk, and Eonyang and Onyang in Ulsan span 48,150 hectares. This is approximately 80.0% of the area of Seoul (60,523 hectares).

The Uiseong wildfire rapidly spread with typhoon-level winds, resulting in a damaged area of 45,157 hectares in Gyeongbuk's Uiseong, Andong, Yeongdeok, Yeongyang, and Cheongsong, which corresponds to 74.6% of the area of Seoul.

Previously, wildfires occurred in Los Angeles, California, on January 7, causing significant damage until the 31st. At that time, the area affected by the wildfire was 23,200 hectares. The damage area from the Uiseong wildfire is nearly double that. Lee Cheol-woo, the governor of Gyeongbuk, noted at a briefing on the wildfire held at the Uiseong County Office that, "At that time, there were many reports that pitcher Park Chan-ho's house burned down. The wildfire continued for more than 20 days, yet only about 23,000 hectares were affected."

On Jan. 7 (local time), a forest fire that occurred on the coast of Los Angeles, California, spreads due to the Santa Ana winds, known as the 'devil's wind,' burning a McDonald's building in a nearby city. /Courtesy of Reuters Yonhap

As a result of this wildfire, there are around 33,000 displaced people. Among them, 2,407 households, comprising 8,078 individuals, have not returned home yet. It has been identified that 3,481 locations, including dwellings and agricultural facilities, have been damaged by the wildfire.

The governor said that when the Uiseong wildfire spread to Andong, Cheongsong, Yeongyang, and Yeongdeok, winds at a speed of 27.6 meters per second, classified as typhoon-level, caused the wildfire to spread at a speed of 8.2 kilometers per hour, making it a challenging wildfire to manage. He mentioned that it took less than four hours for the wildfire to spread 40 kilometers, stating, "The wind carried the embers, causing 12 boats to catch fire in the sea off Yeongdeok."