500 South Koreans evacuated from fire in low-income Seoul neighbourhood – National

About 500 South Koreans were forced to flee their homes after a fire spread through a low-income neighborhood in southern Seoul on Friday morning and destroyed at least 60 homes.

Officials said firefighters were bringing the fire under control at Guryong village and there were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths.

Shin Yong-ho, an official at the fire department of Seoul’s Gangnam district, said rescue workers were continuing to search areas affected by the fire but that it was believed that all residents there have safely evacuated.

More than 800 firefighters, police officers and public workers were deployed to fight the flame and handle evacuations after the fire broke out around 6:30 a.m.

Photos from the scene showed firefighters fighting the flame under thick white smoke covering the village known for its dense rows of makeshift houses as helicopters sprayed water from above.

Shin said it was presumed that the fire began at one of the village’s homes made with plastic sheets and plywood. He said the cause of the fire was being investigated.

Kim Ah-reum, an official at the Gangnam district office, said around 500 residents have evacuated to nearby facilities including a school gym. Officials were planning to later move the residents to nearby hotels.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, who is in Switzerland at the World Economic Forum, called for all-out efforts to minimize the damage and mobilize all available firefighters and equipment, his spokeswoman Kim Eun-hye said.

Interior Minister Lee Sang-min also instructed officials to prevent secondary damage and protect residents in nearby areas, the ministry said.

One of the last remaining slums, the village is a symbol of inequality in Asia’s fourth-largest economy just next to the flashy, affluent district of Gangnam.

The area has also been prone to fires, floods and other disasters, with many homes built using cardboard and wood, and residents exposed to safety and health issues.

Plans for redevelopment and relocation have made little progress amid a decades-long tug of war between land owners, residents and authorities.

Seoul said Mayor Oh Se-hoon visited the village and asked officials to draw up measures to relocate families affected by the fire.

—With files from Reuters

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