[Exclusive] N. Korea's tactical road spotted; loud warning sounds clearly heard

[Anchor]

North Korea recently announced that it would permanently close its southern border by blowing up the Donghae Line road.

Movements by North Korea supporting this claim were confirmed through satellite images yesterday (10.17), and today (10.18) they were vividly captured by KBS reporters.

This is an exclusive report by reporter No Ji-young.

[Report]

The front line of the eastern front in Goseong, Gangwon Province.

A North Korean military post flying the national flag is observed across the military demarcation line.

This is near the Donghae Line road that North Korea recently blew up.

Below it, trenches facing south are also noticeable.

Around Haegumgang, work is underway to carve out a road in the mountains.

Between the white pillars where some barbed wire is connected, North Korean soldiers are busily moving back and forth.

This seems to be part of North Korea's recently mentioned "fortification" measures.

[Hong Min/Senior Research Fellow, Korea Institute for National Unification: "In 2015, when North Korea declared a quasi-war state, they also started to maintain trenches and clear routes for movement."]

A vessel, believed to be a North Korean patrol boat, was also spotted patrolling in the waters off the work site.

This is the first time that fortification work along the East Coast has been filmed.

Unidentified noises are also incessant.

The sounds can be heard as far as the Unification Observatory, about 10 kilometers away.

The noises are believed to be broadcasts aimed at preventing North Korean soldiers from hearing South Korean military's broadcasts, according to military authorities.

[Jung Sung-chang/Director, Center for Korean Peninsula Strategy, Sejong Institute: "This shows North Korea's determination not only to block all connecting roads and railways between the South and the North but also to more firmly prevent the defection of North Korean residents."]

Tensions are rising along the eastern front in Gangwon, which has symbolized inter-Korean relations through family reunions and Mount Kumgang tourism.

This is KBS News, No Ji-young.