The good news is that one of the largest wildfires in South Korean history is now under control; the bad news is that one person lost their life and hundreds of homes and buildings were destroyed:
Officials of the local government in the east coast city of Sokcho assess damage from a forest fire on April 7, 2019. (Yonhap)
More than 400 homes and 920 livestock facilities were confirmed to have been burned in a devastating forest fire that raged through east coastal regions this past week, government data showed Sunday, as more damage has been discovered after the blaze was brought under control. The fire, which started Thursday night in the county of Goseong, about 160 kilometers northeast of Seoul, spread quickly to neighboring cities and counties, reducing forests about 742 times the size of a soccer field to ashes. One person was killed in the blaze, one of the biggest wildfires in South Korea. According to the government’s anti-disaster office, the human casualties remain the same, but more property damage has been identified. So far, a total of 401 homes, 925 livestock facilities, 77 warehouses and 100 buildings have been confirmed to have been burned. In addition, 241 agricultural machines and 15 cars were also lost in the fire, according to the office.
Apparently something blowing around in the wind made contact with a power switch to start the massive fire in Gangwon-do:
The state-run Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco) announced that the fire seemed to have been sparked by a power switch at a gas station in Goseong, just miles south of the border with North Korea. According to Kepco, “an alien substance” blown by the wind caught on an electric wire connected to a power switch, causing a spark, which grew into a fire.
No further detail was given about the unidentified substance.
You can read more at the link, but shouldn’t there be better fire prevention measures around these power switches to where something blowing in the wind doesn’t start a fire?
Isabu, a Silla general famed for his conquest (AD 512) of the islands of Dokdo and Ulleungdo, will soon have a bridge in his honor. The city of Samcheok, Gangwon Province, will be building a bridge that will frame the island of Dokdo when viewed from the city, a symbol of the “eye” of Kim Isabu. The “Isabu Dokdo Peace Bridge” is expected to be completed in 2020 and will connect the city of Samcheok with Obun Port. A memorial hall for Kim Isabu and an observatory to view the port will be constructed nearby. A memorial stone honoring Isabu’s voyages was constructed along the harbor in 2010. (provided by the city of Samcheok)
It truly is amazing how South Korean politicians want to reward the Kim regime’s crimes against humanity and threat to world peace by letting them co-host a major sporting event:
A South Korean province is considering a proposal to co-host the 2021 Asian Winter Games with North Korea in a bid to strengthen inter-Korean ties, South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency said on Saturday, quoting provincial governor Choi Moon-soon.
Gangwon province, host for the current 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, is considering the idea also as a way of making further use of Olympics venues, Choi was quoted as saying.
North Korea is participating in the Pyeongchang Games at the invitation of the South, which is using them to help ease tensions between the two countries, still technically at war.
The host city for the 2021 event has not been decided yet.
A spokesman for South Korea’s sports ministry said it “hopes to continue sports exchanges with North Korea after the Winter Games” but it had not yet discussed any bid for the 2021 Games. [Reuters]
I hope Gangwon is not chosen for the host site for the 2021 Asian Winter Games simply because of this idea. Plus how many missile and nuclear tests will there be between now and 2021?
Mount Balwang at the Yongpyeong Resort in PyeongChang, Gangwon Province, is blanketed in 10 centimeters of snow on Nov. 23, 2015. The snowfall was befitting of the day that in South Korea is referred to as “Soseol,” one of the 24 seasonal divisions of the lunar calendar that marks the onset of winter. (Photo provided by Yongpyeong Resort) (Yonhap)
Korea has many great mountain drives for people who love the high peaks of this country to experience. One of the remotest of those can be found just outside of Soraksan National Park. If you have a day to spare while visiting the park then I highly recommend you take a drive up the little traveled Highway 56 in Gangwon province.
This country highway spirals up and down than many high peaks of Gangwon province and features a great distant view of Daecheon Peak, the highest of peak of Soraksan National Park.
Sorak Mountain can be seen poking out of the clouds in the background.
Along the road you will get a chance to see plenty of wildlife, trees, mountain scenery, and country villages. The villages along this road are so remote that I felt like I was going back into time watching this farmer plow his field with manually with oxen.
A farmer plows his fields with oxen in Korea's Gangwon Provice.
Highway mountain peaks provide a scenic backdrop for a Korean farmer plowing his field with oxen.
This trip is not only a great day trip from Soraksan National Park but is also a great way to travel from Soraksan to Odaesan National Park if this park is also on your itinerary. A back entrance to Odaesan can be reached by turning off at the Odaesan park entrance on highway 446.
Along the way to Mt. Odaesan the rising highway provides incredible views of Korea’s Taebak Mountains:
Deep valleys cut through he Taebak Mountain Range.
The high peaks of Mt. Odaesan loom in the distance.
If you have no plans of visiting Odaesan National Park then just stay on the highway which will eventually allow you to connect to Interstate 50 via highway 31 which will take you back to Seoul.
Down the mountain and back to civilization.
To get to this highway from Soraksan National Park just travel south on Highway 7 from Sokcho to the city of Yangyang. At Yangyang travel west on Highway 44 for about 10 miles before turning at the intersection on to Highway 56 heading South. It is a great ride that shouldn’t be missed for those already visiting the area.
Today the 9th of December is the 38th anniversary of the 1968 death of a young Korean boy, Lee Seung-bok, who was murdered by North Korean commandos who had infiltrated into Gangwon province. On the night of December 9th the communists stormed into the small traditional home that the Lee family lived, in search of food and shelter. The family gave them what food they had and hoped that the commandos would soon leave.
However, things turned tragic when the communists asked the 7 year old Lee Seung-bok if he preferred North Korea or South Korea. The young boy said he liked South Korea. The commandos began to beat him, but he would not change his mind and before being killed he said the now famous line, “I hate Communists!” The North Korean commandos then proceeded to cut out the 10 year old boys mouth and then began to butcher the rest of the family after they tried to stop the killing of Lee Seung-bok.
In total the 7 year old Seung-bok, his 5 year old, brother Seung-su, his 2 year old sister Seung-ja, and his 31 year old mother Joo Dae-ha were killed by the communists and left to die outside. However, his older brother who was also stabbed and had his head smashed with a rock, did survive. Though seriously wounded he was able to stagger to the residence of his family’s closest neighbor once the commandos left and plead for help and warn others of the infiltrators. Also a family friend had arrived at the residence and was attacked by the North Koreans and stabbed in the leg but he was also able to escape and warn nearby ROK Army officials.
The murdered Lee Seung-bok and his family.
The now alerted neighbors immediately began to take up what crude weapons they had and began guard shifts to watch for the North Koreans until local authorities arrived. The ROK Army arrived and began to secure the area and search for the communist spies. Unfortunately the murderers were never found and escaped, but the words of Lee Seung-bok served as a rallying cry in schools across Korea and continue to resonate to this day. However, these words resonate today not with an anti-communist message but as a myth created by the authoritarian government of then President Park Chung Hee.
So how did this change in perceptions occur? Of course by repeating a lie over and over again until people just assume it is true. This is propaganda 101 for every communist and that is exactly what they did in the Lee Seung-bok incident. Over the past 12 years so called “progressive groups” using names that actually sound legitimate, which in this case the pro-North Korean sympathizers called themselves the People’s Coalition for Media Reform, to disguise who they really are because they just can’t come out and say they are communists because then people would not take them seriously. This is the same tactic being used currently in the General MacArthur controversy raging in Inchon. Anyway this group accused the then Park Chung-hee government and the Chosun Ilbo newspaper reporters who covered the tragedy as fabricating the entire story and not even being at the scene.
It is amazing to me that such blatant disinformation about the incident would be allowed to simmer for this long even though there are numerous eyewitnesses including Lee Seung-bok’s own brother who survived the massacre who verify the accounts of what happened that night. The only reason I can see that this disinformation has been allowed to simmer in the public’s imagination for so long is because more liberal governments who have come to power in South Korea over the last 12 years have been eager to defame the former President Park Chung-hee who still holds a positive image with many South Koreans for turning the country from one of the world’s poorest countries and into an economic power house. There is also the dual reason of appeasing the North Koreans as well in the name of the “Sunshine Policy” even if it means destroying the image and sacrifice of this young boy.
Lee Seung-bok's home.
If you want to see for yourself the story of Lee Seung-bok, I encourage you to check out the Lee Seung-bok memorial located near the Soksa interchange on Interstate 50. Just exit off of Interstate 50 on the interchange and head North for about 10 minutes on highway 31 until you see the memorial located to your right. The memorial is quite large and with a huge parking lot, so you can’t miss it.
The memorial is located near where the incident actually happened and includes an accurate replica of Lee Seung-bok’s home, his grave site, a military static display, a park, and a museum with a theater that depicts all the details of the Lee Seung-bok tragedy. The video they play in the theater can also be viewed online by clicking here. I checked the memorial out as part of a side trip while traveling to Odaesan National Park. The memorial is an interesting excursion if you are in the area and the ride up highway 31 features some really gorgeous Gangwon-do mountain scenery.
Inside the museum at the Lee Seung-bok Memorial. The museum covers the entire history of the tragedy and features a display of items such as those pictured that have been captured from North Korean spies.
