This is really horrible for everyone that lost their homes. Hopefully the firefighters can quickly get this under control:
Hundreds of residents and tourists evacuated from a wildfire that spread fast with strong winds blowing across Gangneung, Gangwon Province, on Tuesday, amid growing concerns over additional damages due to high winds and dry weather.
According to the Gangwon Fire Headquarters, the forest fire broke out in Nangok-dong of Gangneung, Gangwon Province, at around 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, and the flames began to spread to houses nearby and other areas through strong winds. About 103 hectares of forest, the size of 144 soccer fields, were damaged and about 40 homes were destroyed. No casualties were reported as of 1 p.m., but authorities said they were having difficulties in extinguishing the fire as they were unable to dispatch helicopters due to strong winds.
Korea Herald
You can read more at the link.
The ROK military was fortunate no one was hurt or killed by the is missile malfunction:
![A photo uploaded to social media late Tuesday night by residents close to the 18th Fighter Wing Air Base in Gangneung, Gangwon shows a fire caused by a Hyunmoo-2 short-range ballistic missile crashing shortly after being launched. [YONHAP]](https://i0.wp.com/koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2022/10/05/ee9ea2a0-6277-478e-9c00-d135bae9c794.jpg?w=640&ssl=1)
A Hyunmoo-2 short-range ballistic missile malfunctioned and crashed shortly after being launched from a South Korean military base late Tuesday night during a joint drill by South Korea and the United States, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).
The drill was a response to North Korea’s launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM)on Tuesday morning.
In its initial 7 a.m. press release, the JCS said that South Korea and the United States each launched two U.S.-made Army Tactical Missile System (Atacms) surface-to-surface missiles beginning at 12:50 a.m. on Wednesday, which accurately hit mock targets and demonstrated the allies’ capability to deter further provocations. (….)The press release made no mention of a South Korean-made Hyunmoo-2 missile fired more than an hour earlier, which crashed almost immediately after its launch.
Joong Ang Ilbo
Residents around the eastern coastal city of Gangneung, Gangwon, reported a fire and a loud explosion close to the location of the 18th Fighter Wing Air Base at around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday night. Reports of the joint drill were embargoed until 5 a.m. Wednesday.
Images uploaded to social media by local residents showed an orange fireball.
The South Korean military was forced to issue a clarification about the Hyunmoo-2’s crash-landing after reports of the explosion spread.
“Immediately after its launch, the missile flew inland instead of toward the sea and abnormally landed on a golf course on the base at a location approximately 700 meters (765 yards) from a civilian residential area,” said a military official who spoke to the JoongAng Ilbo on condition of anonymity, implying the missile’s trajectory had been intended for the East Sea.
“The flames (the residents saw) were not from the warhead exploding, but rather from the propellant burning,” he added. “There was no damage to civilians nearby as the missile crashed within the base immediately after the launch.”
You can read more at the link, but it appears the ROK military may have tried to keep news of this accident quiet until the social media frenzy became enough they had to issue a statement. This is definitely an embarrassing accident for the ROK military to have happen to them right after North Korea conducts their longest successful ballistic missile test yet.
