ASF DETECTION ALARMS S. KOREAN AUTHORITIES

[Anchor Lead]

Quarantine authorities are on alert again following the detection of African swine fever in an area bordering North Korea. The issue has exposed loopholes in South Korea's efforts to fight the virus.

[Pkg]

This is where a wild boar infected with African swine fever was discovered. It's located ten kilometers from the fence that South Korean authorities had installed to keep the virus away from the South. But the 1.5-meter-tall steel fence intended to block wild boar from moving southward has turned out to be of little use. A walk along the fence leads to a small brook where the fence is severed. The gap measures two to three meters wide. The gate installed by a field is wide open.

[Soundbite] KO KANG-HYUN(HWACHEON RESIDENT) : "The fence is open in multiple spots, and it's easy for wild boars to pass through. The iron net is useless. It's of zero help."

As many as 36 gaps were found on a 15-kilometer section of the fence. That's one gap for every 400 meters on average.

[Soundbite] CHUNG HYUN-KYU(DIRECTOR, HANSOO SWINE RESEARCH INST.) : "Healthy boar can even jump over the fence. Others go around or walk along the fence to find holes."

The situation is similar in other neighborhoods. In the section near the Peace Dam the gap is wide enough for vehicles to pass through.

[Soundbite] JEON YOUNG-TAEK(GANGWON-DO PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT) : "We installed the fence after discussing the matter with local residents. Some areas inevitably have holes."

The protective fence stretches 240 kilometers from Goseong, Gangwon-do Province, to Paju, Gyeonggi-do Province. It cost over 11 billion won to install, but it has yet to prove its effectiveness.