2,200 evacuees yet to return home after floods, landslides

A flood victim walks between tents used as temporary shelter inside a community sports center in Yecheon, North Gyeongsang Province, Friday. (Yonhap)

Of the nearly 18,000 people who evacuated their homes due to torrential rains that caused landslides and flash floods from last week, some 2,200 remained in temporary shelters like community halls, schools and senior centers or with relatives, as of Friday morning.

Out of the nationwide total of 11,691 households that have evacuated, 1,426 were yet to return to their homes, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters said Friday.

The death toll from the floods and landslides stood at 47, including a Marine who was found dead Wednesday after being swept away by a torrent while searching for survivors in Yecheon, North Gyeongsang Province. The number of people missing or injured also remained the same as the previous day at four and 35, respectively.

The area of farms inundated amounted to over 34,000 hectares, which is more than half the size of Seoul.

Nearly 600 homes were flooded, and 136 were otherwise damaged by the heavy downpours that took place over several days. Damages have been reported at 146 road slopes and 255 dikes.

Emergency repairs have been made for 57 percent of the 2,344 reported cases of damages to private and public facilities nationwide.

Some 825,000 livestock such as chickens and ducks have been killed.

As of Friday morning, 212 roads, 613 locations along rivers and streams, 129 riverside parking lots and 56 forest trails remained blocked.

Army medics offer consultation services to residents of flood-stricken Ungjin-dong in Gongju, South Chungcheong Province, Thursday. (Yonhap)

By Kim So-hyun(sophie@heraldcorp.com)