Seoul traffic returns to normal after overnight downpours, but more storms forecast for tonight

Traffic in Seoul is returning to normal Saturday afternoon as the overnight downpours that battered the city began to ease. The Dongbu Expressway, which had been fully closed earlier in the morning, has reopened.

Authorities remain on high alert, however, as forecasters warn that strong winds and heavy rain will return Saturday night.

According to Yonhap and the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the intense rainfall that began Friday night prompted flood alerts for Gangseo-gu, Eunpyeong-gu and Mapo-gu between 4:24 a.m. and 5:11 a.m. Saturday. Flood advisories were also issued for Mapo-gu and Yangcheon-gu.

A flood alert is issued when rainfall exceeds 50 millimeters per hour or 90 millimeters over three hours. A flood advisory is triggered when rainfall tops 55 millimeters per hour or 20 millimeters falls within 15 minutes.

As water levels surged overnight, the Han River Flood Control Office issued a flood watch around 4:50 a.m. Saturday for the Mokgamcheon stream at the Neobudae Bridge point in Seoul. The watch was lifted around 1 p.m. as the rain tapered off through the morning.

The Korea Forest Service also issued a landslide crisis alert for the entire Greater Seoul area. Within Seoul, Eunpyeong-gu issued a landslide warning and Dobong-gu issued a preliminary landslide alert, while Mapo-gu banned entry into forested areas and urged residents to watch for early signs of landslides.

Around 5:37 a.m., rising water levels in the Jungnangcheon stream forced a full closure of the Dongbu Expressway along its entire stretch from the Surak underpass to Seongsu Junction. The closure was fully lifted around 11:16 a.m.

Around 6:53 a.m., a vehicle fire broke out inside the Yongma Tunnel in Jungnang-gu, restricting traffic through the tunnel. The Acheon-bound lane reopened at 9:05 a.m., but the opposite direction remains closed.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said the storm generated 120 damage reports in total, including 89 drainage support requests, four cases of fallen trees and 27 facility safety calls.

As of 1 p.m., 22 streams across Seoul — including the Jungnangcheon, Jeongneungcheon, Mokdongcheon and Seongbukcheon — remain closed to the public. Earlier in the morning, four roads were also temporarily closed: the underpasses below Jeungsan Bridge and Haengju 1 Bridge, the Dongbu Expressway and Garamgil.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government sent directives to all departments and affiliated agencies calling for thorough safety management in response to the heavy rain, and also relayed the instructions via text message and SNS.

When the heavy rain advisory was issued, the city activated Level 2 emergency operations at 3:40 a.m. Saturday, deploying 6,642 city and district civil servants to emergency duty. After the advisory was lifted, the city scaled back to a reinforced-monitoring posture at 8 a.m. and continues to track weather and river conditions.

Personnel on duty are inspecting vulnerable areas and facilities — including streams, low-lying zones and storm drains — and maintaining contact networks with care workers and community support partners.