SEOUL TO BUILD RAINWATER DRAINAGE TUNNELS

[Anchor Lead]

Following last month's heavy downpours that flooded some downtown areas around the city, the Seoul metropolitan government announced plans to construct large rainwater drainage tunnels. The city government says it will build the tunnels in three flood-prone regions, including Gangnam Station, Gwanghwamun and the Dorimcheon Stream, by 2027.

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The streets near Gangnam Station resembled a river on August 8th after it was hit hard by a heavy downpour of over 110 millimeters per hour. The region was flooded fast due to its geographical features. It is more than ten meters lower compared to neighboring areas. On the same day. roads were also inundated near the Dorimcheon Stream, as rainwater could not run into the Hangang River and regurgitated instead. During the Chuseok holiday 12 years ago, the Gwanghwamun area was flooded by sudden torrential rain. It turns out, the drainage system in Seoul was designed to handle up to 95 millimeters of rainwater an hour. So the city suffered flood damage, following heavy rain exceeding the capacity. The Seoul city government announced plans to inject a budget of 900 billion won and build large deep underground rainwater drainage tunnels in three regions including Gangnam Station, Gwanghwamun and the Dorimcheon Stream.

[Soundbite] Jang Ki-cheol(Seoul City Gov't) : "Gangnam Station and the Dorimcheon Stream were hit the hardest by the heavy downpours in Aug. The Gwanghwamun region suffered huge flood damage back in 2010. So we have decided to build the tunnels first in these three regions."

A rainwater storage tunnel that can handle heavy rain pouring over 110 millimeters an hour will be built between Gangnam Station and the Hangang River. Near the Dorimcheon Stream and Gwanghwamun, similar facilities will be constructed to process rainwater of 100 millimeters an hour. The nation's first underground rainwater tunnel was installed in Sinwol-dong in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul. Thanks to the facility, the district remained safe from last month's downpours.

[Soundbite] Oh Se-hoon(Seoul Mayor (Aug. 10)) : "We will invest KRW 1.5 tn over the next decade to build large-scale flood prevention facilities, similar to the one in Sinwol-dong, and minimize flooding in low-lying areas."

After completing the tunnels in the three regions, the Seoul city government will begin building more in other flood-prone areas like Sadang-dong in Dongjak-gu district, and Gangdong-gu and Yongsan-gu districts beginning in 2027.