Boats swept onto roads as record rainfall batters Geoje, Tongyeong

Torrential rain across South Gyeongsang Province on Monday submerged and washed out roads, triggering a cascade of damage reports.

Geoje was hit particularly hard as the downpour coincided with high tide, setting off flooding and landslides that caused emergency calls to jump sharply.

According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, 124.5 millimeters of rain fell on Geoje in a single hour beginning at 1:32 a.m. Monday — the highest hourly rainfall recorded in the city since weather observations began there on Jan. 24, 1972. The previous record was 96.5 mm, set on July 5, 2001.

By 10:12 a.m. Monday, Geoje had recorded 539.3 mm of rain for the day and Tongyeong 390.4 mm — both all-time daily records since observations began. With rain still falling, the final daily totals were expected to climb further.

Cumulative rainfall from Saturday through 9 a.m. Monday reached 810.2 mm in Geoje and 678.9 mm in Tongyeong, with Gadeokdo recording 435.5 mm, Jeju's Hallasan (south wall) 375.5 mm, Sacheon (Samcheonpo) in South Gyeongsang Province 353.5 mm, and Goseong 334.0 mm — confirming that the southern coast and Jeju's mountainous interior bore the brunt of the deluge.

To put those figures in context, the average summer rainfall for Geoje and Tongyeong — based on the 1991–2020 climatological mean — stands at 935.1 mm and 728.8 mm respectively, meaning roughly 90 percent of a typical summer's rain fell on both cities in just three days.

The Geoje fire department raised its response level to Level 1 at 1:10 a.m. Monday and escalated to Level 2 at 6:18 a.m.

The National Fire Agency deployed the Yeongnam and Honam special rescue units of the Central 119 Rescue Headquarters, along with the Ulsan 119 Chemical Rescue Center, and dispatched specialized equipment including a high-capacity foam discharge system to the scene.

About 180 additional personnel — drawn from the South Gyeongsang Province fire headquarters' special rescue unit and fire departments in Tongyeong, Jinju and Goseong — were also mobilized under the Geoje fire department's coordination to conduct rescues and safety operations.

The National Fire Agency activated its situation task force at 2:40 a.m. to closely monitor conditions on the ground. About 100 residents evacuated from Yesol Village in Aju-dong, while some 30 isolated residents were evacuated from Hoejin Village in Irun-myeon.

Rescue and safety operations continued in other affected areas including Dunduk-myeon, Sadeung-myeon, Jangpyeong-dong, Geoje-myeon and Gohyeon-dong.

As of 6 a.m., cumulative rainfall stood at 782.5 mm in Geoje, 628.9 mm in Tongyeong and 428.5 mm in Busan's Gangseo district. Peak hourly rainfall figures were 124.5 mm in Geoje, 101.5 mm in Busan's Gangseo district and 97.4 mm in Tongyeong.

Authorities received 603 reports of rain-related damage including road disruptions and flooded housing, with South Gyeongsang Province accounting for 555 cases, or 92 percent of the total.

Three passenger ferry routes involving three vessels were suspended. Access was also blocked at 299 sections across five national parks and 826 locations in six cities and provinces, including riverside walking paths and parking lots.

The Ministry of Interior and Safety activated Level 1 of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters at 6 a.m. Monday after heavy rain warnings were issued for Busan, South Gyeongsang Province and Jeju.

Yun Ho-jung, head of the Central Disaster Headquarters and minister of interior and safety, vowed an all-out response. "We will work with all relevant agencies to protect lives until the rain stops and recovery is complete," he said, urging the public to check safety alerts frequently and stay away from hazardous areas.