The death toll from floods caused by heavy rains in South Korea has risen to 39 dead and 34 injured, while nine people are still missing.
Four more bodies have been recovered from a once-flooded underground road in central South Korea, indicating that casualties could rise as rescuers continue an operation to drain and search the flooded underpass, where more than 10 vehicles are believed to be submerged, South Korean news agency (Yonhap) quoted officials as saying.
Downpours have also damaged 628 public facilities and 317 other private properties, including 146 roads that collapsed or were swept away and 139 flooded homes, according to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol announced said in his statements that the mobilization of all available resources and all measures, including designating damage areas as special disaster areas to deal with the repercussions of the heavy rains.
Since the end of last week, South Korea has been experiencing heavy rains that led to landslides and temporarily cut off electricity in several regions of the country, while more than 7,000 people were forced to flee their homes and moved to safe places away from the floods.
