Island residents frustrated by delayed warning alert after North Korean shelling

“I clearly heard an explosive noise around 10 a.m. from home,” said Kim Jin-soo, a resident of Baengnyeong Island bordering North Korea. “I didn't know it was North Korea. I thought our military was conducting a military exercise.”

Yeonpyeong Island residents take cover in one of the eight shelters on the island on Friday. [ONGJIN COUNTY OFFICE/YONHAP]

Residents of South Korean islands along the maritime border with North Korea are frustrated over the delayed warning messages they received from their own military after the North fired artillery shells into nearby waters.

According to the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff, North Korea fired around 200 shells over two hours starting from 9 a.m. on Friday.

However, the evacuation alert was not issued until noon, an hour after the North Korean firing ended.

“I clearly heard an explosion around 10 a.m. from home,” said Kim Jin-soo, a resident of Baengnyeong Island, in an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo. “I didn't know it was North Korea. I thought our military was conducting a military exercise.”

He said the South Korean military "should have provided the residents with accurate information on the situation so we could have responded when it happened.”

Baengnyeong Island is the closest of South Korea's Yellow Sea islands to North Korea, with the distance to the nearest point on the North Korean mainland only 17 kilometers (around 10 miles).

Park In-hwan, a 66-year-old resident of Yeonpyeong Island, said that the situation was the same on his island, which is also close to North Korea.

“We became anxious after learning about the North Korean artillery fire from the evacuation broadcast and online news,” Park said.

A county official on Yeonpyeong Island said that even the local government can't keep track of the situation with North Korea when the South Korean military does not provide timely information.

A resident of the island said the evacuation warning initially sounded every 30 minutes, but this was later shortened to every five minutes at 2 p.m., right before the South Korean military exercise in response.

The South Korean military fired artillery rounds into the Yellow Sea around 3 p.m.

The residents of three islands on the Yellow Sea — Yeonpyeong, Baengnyeong, and Daecheong — took cover at shelters following the emergency evacuation alert.

“There are eight shelters on the island,” said Lee Seon-jae, the village head on the island. “Approximately 60 people were crowded in one shelter.”

Lee said that while some residents rushed to the center without carrying any personal items, others came prepared.

“Our village head [Lee] took older people too weak to walk in his car to the shelter,” said Park from Yeonpyeong Island.

Park said that many residents are concerned about the severe impact the latest North Korean provocation could have on their livelihood, which revolves around fishing.

The residents returned to their homes from the evacuation center at 3:46 p.m. when the situation, including the South Korean counter-response, concluded.

There are 2,000 people living on Yeonpyeong Island and 9,000 on Baengnyeong, including military personnel based on the islands.

BY LEE CHAN-KYU, LEE HO-JEONG [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]