National fire mobilization order issued for drought-stricken South Gyeongsang Province as 200 water tankers deployed

South Gyeongsang Province received an emergency deployment of 200 fire department water tankers and 400 firefighters from across the country Wednesday as a prolonged heat wave and severe drought left the region struggling with acute water shortages.

The National Fire Agency issued a national fire mobilization order at 8 p.m. Tuesday after determining that the water shortage in South Gyeongsang Province had worsened beyond what local firefighting resources alone could address. It marked only the second time such an order has been issued for drought conditions, following a similar mobilization for Gangneung, Gangwon Province, in August last year.

Under the order, 200 mid-size water tankers and 400 personnel were drawn from fire departments across 16 cities and provinces nationwide, including Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and South Chungcheong Province. The vehicles arrived at staging areas within the province Wednesday morning and are set to support agricultural and household water supply operations through Thursday afternoon.

By region, the breakdown of tankers dispatched was: Seoul 39, Gyeonggi Province 37, South Chungcheong Province 19, northern Gyeonggi Province 18, Incheon 16, North Gyeongsang Province 14, Busan 12, Gangwon Province 11, North Chungcheong Province 9, South Jeolla Province 8, Daegu 6, North Jeolla Province 3, and Gwangju, Daejeon, Ulsan and Sejong 2 each.

Of the mobilized equipment, 40 tankers were prioritized for Miryang, the area hardest hit by the drought. The remaining vehicles were distributed across 13 other cities and counties: 20 each to Jinju, Sacheon and Gimhae; 18 to Yangsan; 14 each to Namhae and Hadong; 10 each to Geoje, Uiryeong, Geochang and Changwon; 6 to Changnyeong; and 4 each to Tongyeong and Haman. Each mid-size tanker carries between 6,000 and 12,000 liters and will shuttle between water intake points and underserved areas.

The average water storage rate at agricultural reservoirs across South Gyeongsang Province currently stands at 33.3 percent, less than half the normal level of 71.3 percent. Agricultural drought alerts have been issued for 17 of the province's 18 cities and counties — all except Hamyang — and four of them, Miryang, Geoje, Haman and Uiryeong, have been placed at the highest level: "Serious."

Miryang has been hit particularly hard, with its reservoir storage rate falling to 25.66 percent. The Baegan Reservoir stands at just 1.3 percent capacity and the Ungdong Reservoir at 3.5 percent, with some facilities effectively running dry.

Governor Park Wan-su visited the drought support field command post in Buk-myeon, Changwon, and water supply operations along Guryong-ro on Wednesday afternoon to review firefighting unit deployments and the state of water delivery to rice-growing farmland.

"The mobilized equipment must be deployed effectively to match actual demand on the ground and provide real relief to crops that are withering," Park said at the scene. He also directed officials to keep the field support system running through the province's public safety headquarters until the drought is resolved.