South Korea Struggles to Contain Wildfires that Have Killed 26

A view of the burnt remains of a building destroyed by wildfires at the Namhu Agricultural Industrial Complex in Andong city, South Korea, 27 March 2025. EPA/JEON HEON-KYUN
A view of the burnt remains of a building destroyed by wildfires at the Namhu Agricultural Industrial Complex in Andong city, South Korea, 27 March 2025. EPA/JEON HEON-KYUN
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South Korea Struggles to Contain Wildfires that Have Killed 26

A view of the burnt remains of a building destroyed by wildfires at the Namhu Agricultural Industrial Complex in Andong city, South Korea, 27 March 2025. EPA/JEON HEON-KYUN
A view of the burnt remains of a building destroyed by wildfires at the Namhu Agricultural Industrial Complex in Andong city, South Korea, 27 March 2025. EPA/JEON HEON-KYUN

Helicopters dumped water over a burning forest in South Korea on Thursday as fire crews struggled to contain the country's worst-ever wildfires, which have killed 26 people, forced at least 37,000 others to flee their homes and destroyed more than 300 structures.

Multiple wildfires fueled by strong winds and dry weather have been raging across South Korea's southeastern regions since last Friday.

The government has mobilized thousands of personnel, dozens of helicopters and other equipment to extinguish the blazes, but gusty winds are hampering their efforts, The Associated Press reported.

Rain was expected later Thursday. But Korea Forest Service chief Lim Sang-seop said the amount — less than 5 millimeters (0.2 inches) is forecast — likely won't help much in extinguishing the wildfires.

The fatalities include a pilot whose helicopter crashed during efforts to contain a fire Wednesday and four firefighters and other workers who died earlier after being trapped by fast-moving flames.

Authorities haven't disclosed details of the civilian dead, except that they are mostly in their 60s or older who found it difficult to escape quickly or who even refused orders to evacuate. They suspect human error caused several of the wildfires, including cases where people started fires while clearing overgrown grass from family tombs or with sparks during welding work.

Lee Han-kyung, deputy head of the government's disaster response center, told a meeting Thursday that the wildfires have again disclosed “the reality of climate crisis that we have yet experienced,” according to Yonhap news agency. Calls to his center were unanswered.

Scientists say the warming atmosphere around the world is driving ever more extreme weather events, including wildfires, flooding, droughts, hurricanes and heat waves that are killing people and causing billions of dollars in damage every year.

The wildfires have burned 36,010 hectares (88,980 acres) of land, the disaster response center said Thursday. Observers say that's the worst figure of its kind in South Korea. The report said the blazes have also injured 30 people, eight of them seriously, destroyed 325 buildings and structures and forced more than 37,180 people to evacuate.

As of Thursday morning, the center said authorities were mobilizing more than 9,000 people and about 120 helicopters to battle the wildfires.

In Cheongsong, one of the fire-hit areas, thick plumes of smoke were bellowing from Juwang Mountain on Thursday morning. Helicopters repeatedly hovered over the mountain, dropping water. The amount of smoke later appeared to have diminished.

At a Buddhist temple near the mountain, workers covered a stone pagoda and other structures with fire-resistant materials, while firefighters poured water on sites near the temple.

The hardest-hit areas include Andong city and the neighboring counties of Uiseong and Sancheong, and the city of Ulsan.

On Wednesday night, strong winds and smoke-filled skies forced authorities in the southeastern city of Andong to order evacuations in two villages, including Puncheon, home to the Hahoe folk village — a UNESCO World Heritage Site founded around the 14th-15th century. Hikers were advised to leave the scenic Jiri Mountain as another fire spread closer.

The fires in the past week have destroyed houses, factories and some historic structures. In Uiseong, about 20 of the 30 structures at the Gounsa temple complex, which was said to be originally built in the 7th century, have burned. Among them were two state-designated “treasures” — a pavilion-shaped building erected overlooking a stream in 1668, and a Joseon dynasty structure built in 1904 to mark the longevity of a king.

The Korea Forest Service wildfire warning is at its highest level, requiring local governments to assign more workers to emergency response, tighten entry restrictions for forests and parks, and recommend that military units withhold live-fire exercises.



Catholic Cardinals Meet to Discuss Date of Conclave for New Pope 

A cardinal is surrounded by media as he arrives for a general congregation meeting in the Vatican, as seen from Rome, Italy, April 28, 2025. (Reuters)
A cardinal is surrounded by media as he arrives for a general congregation meeting in the Vatican, as seen from Rome, Italy, April 28, 2025. (Reuters)
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Catholic Cardinals Meet to Discuss Date of Conclave for New Pope 

A cardinal is surrounded by media as he arrives for a general congregation meeting in the Vatican, as seen from Rome, Italy, April 28, 2025. (Reuters)
A cardinal is surrounded by media as he arrives for a general congregation meeting in the Vatican, as seen from Rome, Italy, April 28, 2025. (Reuters)

The world's Catholic cardinals met on Monday for the first time after the funeral of Pope Francis to discuss a possible date to enter a secret conclave and elect the next leader of the global Church.

Any decision could be announced around mid-day (1000 GMT). The conclave is not expected to begin before May 6.

The 16th-century Sistine Chapel, where conclaves are held, was closed to tourists on Monday to allow for preparations for the vote.

The past two conclaves, in 2005 and 2013, lasted just two days. But Swedish Cardinal Anders Arborelius said on Monday he expects this conclave may take longer, as many of the cardinals appointed by Pope Francis have never met each other before.

Francis made a priority of appointing cardinals from places that had never had them, such as Myanmar, Haiti, and Rwanda.

"We don't know each other," Arborelius, one of about 135 cardinals under the age of 80 who will enter the conclave, said.

Francis, pope since 2013, died aged 88 on April 21. His funeral on Saturday and a procession through Rome to his burial place at the Basilica of St. Mary Major attracted crowds estimated at more than 400,000.

German Cardinal Walter Kasper told La Repubblica newspaper that the outpouring of mourners for Francis indicated that Catholics wanted the next pope to continue with his reforming style of papacy.

Francis, the first pope from Latin America, largely tried to open up the often staid Church to new conversations. He allowed debate on issues such as ordaining women as clergy.

"The People of God voted with their feet," said Kasper, who is 92 and will not take part in the conclave. "I am convinced that we must go ahead in the footsteps of Francis."

However, a bloc of conservative cardinals are certain to push back against this and seek a pope who reasserts traditions and restricts Francis' vision of a more inclusive Church.