WILDFIRES PUT OUT AFTER 9 DAYS

[Anchor Lead]

Wildfires that started in Uljin, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province and spread northward to Samcheok in Gangwon-do Province have been finally put out after nine days. The first rain in a month played a big part. As the main fire has come under control, authorities plan to help displaced residents return to their homes.

[Pkg]

Firefighters began gaining control of the wildfire Sunday morning when the rain soaked the area. The Forest Service declared the main Uljin fire extinguished at 9 a.m. Sunday. The fire at Eungbongsan Mountain, which proved difficult to put out until the end, came under control thanks to Sunday's rain. Firefighters first contained the flames burning toward the residential area before defending Eungbongsan Mountain and the Geumgang Pine Tree colony. Firefighting efforts were difficult as the wind kept changing directions and thick smoke made it difficult for helicopters to fly over the fire. In particular, the rocky Eungbongsan Mountain 1,000 meters tall, continued to pose danger as the heated rocks didn’t cool down. Fire helicopters and special firefighters were deployed to put out the flames. As the main fire was finally extinguished, authorities now plan to help the displaced residents and restore the damaged forests. Twenty temporary homes are to be built in the badly damaged Bukmyeon village and 50 additional houses on an empty lot in the Jukbyeon marine industrial complex for evacuees from villages where temporary housing cannot be built.

[Soundbite] Choi Byeong-am(Minister, Korea Forest Service) : "The government plans to shift to the restoration stage from the extinguishing and response stage, tally up damages and help displaced residents quickly return to their lives."

The latest wildfire caused no casualties, but it was recorded as the longest and most destructive one in history. It took more than 200 hours to put out the main fire since it started in Uljin at 11:17 a.m. on March 4th. Authorities have tentatively calculated that roughly 25,000 hectares of forest have been burnt, when including the fires in Gangneung and Donghae.