[앵커]
Early this morning, a surprise heavy rain of 70mm per hour fell in North Chungcheong Province.
A landslide occurred on the highway, and damage such as flooding of houses and shops followed one after another.
Reporter Song Geun-seop on the sidewalk.
[리포트]
Soil from the landslide covered the highway.
Heavy equipment such as excavators continuously scoops up soil.
At around 4:40 a.m. today, a landslide occurred near the Jecheon Tunnel in the Busan direction of the Jungang Expressway, and about 1,000 tons of soil poured onto the highway.
The landslide hit a taxi passing by the highway at the time, and the driver and passengers in their 60s were injured and taken to a hospital.
Although the Korea Expressway Corporation started emergency restoration, the work continued throughout the morning, limiting traffic in one direction on the highway.
Traffic on one lane resumed after 7 hours and 40 minutes, but control on the other lane remains.
[정동균/차장/한국도로공사 제천지사 : “최근 지속된 강우로 인해서, 비탈면에 흙이 포화 된 상태에서 오늘 또 집중 강우가 내리면서 토사가 무게를 못 이기고 흘러내린 것 같습니다.”]
In North Chungcheong this morning, a surprise heavy rain of up to 70mm per hour fell.
In Chungju and Okcheon, more than 100mm of rainfall was recorded in just two or three hours.
As shops and restaurants in the area were flooded and houses were flooded, muddy water rushed into the house in an instant.
[김재옥/충주시 산척면 : “새벽에 눈을 떠보니까 침대 위에 물이 있어. (물이 차서) 나오지도 못해요. 문이 안 열렸는데 어떻게 나와. 그래서 119가 와서…”]
It is expected to rain again in the central region next week, so special attention is required for riverside and lowland residents.
This is Song Geun-seop from KBS News.
Cinematographer: Kim Hyun-gi