South Korea Battles Devastating Rainfall: Rising Death Toll and Widespread Disruption

South Korea is in the grips of a severe weather crisis as heavy rainfall claims 14 lives, with 12 individuals still unaccounted for. The southern county of Sancheong has been hit hardest, receiving close to 800mm of rain since Wednesday, Al Jazeera reports, resulting in significant casualties.

Neighboring regions, such as Hapcheon and Hadong, have also borne the brunt of this extreme weather, experiencing substantial rainfall measuring 699mm and 621.5mm respectively. The city of Gwangju reports two of the missing persons amidst the chaos, as acknowledged by Yonhap, a local news agency.

Nationwide, authorities have documented 1,920 cases of infrastructure damage from flooded roads and soil erosion to collapsed public facilities. Furthermore, 2,234 incidents have been reported involving damage to private properties like residential buildings and agricultural land. More than 12,900 individuals have sought refuge in emergency shelters spread across 14 pivotal cities and provinces, according to government reports.

In addition, the science ministry highlights how torrential rains caused significant service disruptions, leading to blackouts at various cell stations. The counties of Sancheong and Gapyeong faced the most acute service outages, yet by Sunday evening, approximately 90% of wireless services and 98% of landline services were reinstated.

While July's monsoon season typically delivers heavy rains, South Korea's southern regions have been inundated by some of the heaviest rains on record this past week. Experts emphasize that climate change is intensifying such extreme weather phenomena globally, noting last year's record rains and floods that took over a dozen lives in South Korea alone.

(With inputs from agencies.)