South Korea: 47 people die in excessive rains, 3 still missing

SEOUL: Rescuers have found one more corpse of someone who was washed away by recent torrential rains, bringing the verified death toll to 47, according to fire authorities, as reported by Yonhap news agency on Saturday.

The body of a man in his 60s was found in Yecheon, 161 kilometres southeast of Seoul, on Saturday.

But in the wake of the landslides and floods brought on by the intense rains that have pummelled the nation since early last week, three persons were still unaccounted for as of Saturday.

Around 2,000 of 18,000 evacuees in 15 cities and provinces still remain in shelters, Yonhap news agency reported.

Meanwhile, monsoon rains of up to 100 millimetres are expected to drench South Korea over the weekend again, the state weather agency said.

A stationary front and low atmospheric pressure from northeastern China to North Korea are forecast to create humid heat in the South, bringing heavy rains across the country through Monday, Yonhap news agency reported.

The greater Seoul area will receive 50 to 100 mm of rain over the weekend, while the northern Gyeonggi Province may see over 150 mm of rainfall.

Precipitation is expected to range between 30 and 80 mm for inland and mountainous areas of Gangwon Province, and the central and southern regions.

According to the authorities, 10,570 people nationwide had to leave their homes because of rain damage. In addition, Yonhap reported that 628 public buildings and 317 other private properties were damaged by downpours, including 146 roads that collapsed or were washed away and 139 flooded homes, Yonhap news agency reported.

Due to the heavy rains, a total of 28,607 homes across the country were left without electricity.

Additionally, as of Monday morning, heavy rain warnings were in effect for the southern regions, Jeju Island, and the Chungcheong provinces.