Thanks to the long-awaited "welcome rain" that fell in Gangneung, Gangwon, the storage rate of Obong Reservoir, the main water source in the area, recovered to the 15% range. The storage rate of Obong Reservoir hit an all-time low in the 11% range and has risen for the second straight day. As time passes, the storage rate is expected to keep climbing.

According to the Gangneung branch of the Korea Rural Community Corporation (KRC) on the 14th, as of 8 a.m. that day the storage rate of Obong Reservoir stood at 15.6%.

When rain falls on the 13th in the Gangneung area of Gangwon, where a disaster was declared due to the worst drought, citizens come out to Obong Reservoir, the water source, and look at the reservoir with worried expressions. /Courtesy of Yonhap News

The storage rate of Obong Reservoir fell to 11.5% at 6 p.m. on the 12th. This is an "all-time low." In this situation, "welcome rain in a drought" fell. From the 12th to 9 a.m. on the 13th, 91.5 mm of rain fell in the Gangneung area. More rain fell than the Korea meteorological Administration's forecast of "up to 60 mm of rain."

Thanks to that, the storage rate rose for two consecutive days on the 13th and 14th. On the 13th, the storage rate rose 2.8 percentage points (p) from the previous day, and the rise in Obong Reservoir's storage rate was the first in 53 days since Jul. 23.

As time passes and water from the mountainous areas flows more into Obong Reservoir, the storage rate is expected to continue to rise. Experts expect the storage rate could climb to 25%–30% going forward.

Typically, when 100 mm of rain falls, the storage rate of Obong Reservoir is estimated to increase by 20 percentage points from the current level. An official at the Gangneung branch of the Rural Community Corporation said, "If the ground is too dry due to drought, the water all soaks in and there is little runoff," adding, "We are conservatively estimating the expected rise in the storage rate." The official went on, "This time as well, more than 100 mm fell on the Gangneung East Coast side, but only about 70–80 mm fell in the mountainous area upstream of Obong Reservoir," adding, "We hope more rain will fall going forward."

Only a few raindrops are expected to fall in Gangwon Province on this day. The next rain is expected around the 16th–17th. The Gangwon Regional Korea meteorological Administration said, "Until this morning, less than 0.1 mm of raindrops will fall in the inland and mountainous areas of Gangwon," adding, "From late night on the 16th to the night of the 17th, rain will fall in places."

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