violent floods sweep across South Korea (British Newspaper)
<div style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /> <h1>Woman clings on for dear life as violent floods sweep across South Korea killing at least 19</h1> <div id="digg-button" class="float-r hidden"> </div> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">This is the incredible moment a frightened woman is helped on to the bonnet of her car to escape rushing water that would sweep her away to almost certain death.</span><span style="font-size: 1.2em;"><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">South Korea is trying to cope with 24 hours of unprecedented torrential rain that has killed at least 19 and caused widespread floods, blocked roads and swept away buildings in and around its capital Seoul. </span><span style="font-size: 1.2em;"><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">One devastating landslide caused by the water has obliterated a mountain resort this morning killing 13.<br /></span></p> <div class="clear"> </div> <div class="artSplitter"><span style="font-size: small;"><img class="blkBorder" src="http://64.19.142.10/i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/07/27/article-2019236-0D2E344500000578-241_634x447.jpg" alt="Survival instinct: The helpless woman is lifted onto the car and clings on as South Korea is hit by dangerous floods " width="634" height="447" /></span> <p class="imageCaption">Survival instinct: The helpless woman is lifted onto the car and clings on as South Korea is hit by dangerous floods</p> </div> <div class="clear"> </div> <div class="artSplitter"><img class="blkBorder" src="http://64.19.142.12/i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/07/27/article-2019236-0D2E191E00000578-423_634x539.jpg" alt="Chaos: A street in southern Seoul is flooded as downpours totalling more than 400mm pounded the city is just 24 hours" width="634" height="539" /> <p class="imageCaption">Chaos: A street in southern Seoul is flooded as downpours totalling more than 400mm pounded the city is just 24 hours</p> </div> <div class="clear"> </div> <div class="artSplitter"><img class="blkBorder" src="http://64.19.142.10/i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/07/27/article-2019236-0D2E1A6A00000578-304_634x351.jpg" alt="No-go: Cars are trapped on a flooded road while insurers fear damage to South Korea will cost many millions to repair" width="634" height="351" /> <p class="imageCaption">No-go: Cars are trapped on a flooded road while insurers fear damage to South Korea will cost many millions to repair</p> </div> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The wave of earth swept through Chuncheon, 100km from Seoul, destroying several buildings, including two small hotels, officials said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Ten of the 13 killed there were students who had been doing voluntary work and were staying in a resort cabin when the mud and debris engulfed them. <br /></span></p> <div class="floatRHS"><span style="font-size: small;"><img class="blkBorder" src="http://64.19.142.11/i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/07/27/article-2019236-0D2E191A00000578-837_306x504.jpg" alt="Trapped: A solitary car is stuck in the water as miles of queues stretch back on this busy flooded motorway " width="306" height="504" /></span> <p class="imageCaption">Trapped: A solitary car is stuck in the water as miles of queues stretch back on this busy flooded motorway</p> </div> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">A married couple and a convenience store owner were also killed.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">About 500 officials and residents worked to rescue people trapped in the mud and wreckage, and twenty-four people were badly injured injured.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">In southern Seoul, six people were killed when a wave of mud crashed through residential areas at the foot of a mountain, said city official Lee Sun-myeong.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">One person was reported to be missing, reportedly a child.<br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Wild weather has battered the Korean peninsula causing widespread flooding and transport delays, while the share price of insurers fell on fears that damage costs would run into millions of dollars.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">At Chuncheon rescue workers were still sifting through the muddy rubble of the wrecked hotels, restaurant and coffee shop searching for missing people. </span><span style="font-size: 1.2em;"><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">'We were asleep and suddenly I heard a big sound, and then the ceiling fell down,' Lee Beon-seok, a student, told local television. <br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">A local resident reported that as the landslide approached it sounded like a fast train.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">'And then I heard someone shouting "help me". So I went out to see, and I saw a landslide had swept all over the area,' she said. <br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Officials said about 20 people were injured when the wall of mud crashed into the buildings near the Soyang River Dam just after midnight. <br /></span></p> <div class="artSplitter"><span style="font-size: small;"><img class="blkBorder" src="http://64.19.142.10/i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/07/27/article-2019236-0D2E296200000578-687_634x422.jpg" alt="Devastation: The landslide in Chuncheon (pictured) has killed at least 10 people overnight" width="634" height="422" /></span> <p class="imageCaption">Devastation: The landslide in Chuncheon (pictured) has killed at least 10 people overnight</p> </div> <div class="artSplitter"><img class="blkBorder" src="http://64.19.142.11/i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/07/27/article-2019236-0D2E33B600000578-873_634x394.jpg" alt="Tragic: A South Korean rescue team carry a dead body out of the mud in Chuncheon" width="634" height="394" /> <p class="imageCaption">Tragic: A South Korean rescue team carry a dead body out of the mud in Chuncheon</p> </div> <div class="artSplitter"><img class="blkBorder" src="http://64.19.142.11/i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/07/27/article-2019236-0D2E2AE200000578-385_634x478.jpg" alt="One of the lucky ones: An emergency worker carries a child survivor who is covered in mud from the landslide" width="634" height="478" /> <p class="imageCaption">One of the lucky ones: An emergency worker carries a child survivor who is covered in mud from the landslide</p> </div> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Local media reports said 35 college students and some 40 tourists were staying at the small hotels. <br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Over the past 24 hours 400 mm (16 inches) of rain has been dumped on the capital Seoul, causing flash floods, landslides and bridge closures. </span><span style="font-size: 1.2em;"><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">A blackout hit the south of the city, suspending train services. <br /></span></p> <div class="artSplitter"><span style="font-size: small;"><img class="blkBorder" src="http://64.19.142.12/i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/07/27/article-2019236-0D2E73FC00000578-65_634x422.jpg" alt="Powerful: Damaged cars are seen at a village near Seoul showing the strength of the landslide and heavy rainfall" width="634" height="422" /></span> <p class="imageCaption">Powerful: Damaged cars are seen at a village near Seoul showing the strength of the landslide and heavy rainfall</p> </div> <p> </p> <div class="clear"> </div> <div class="artSplitter"><img class="blkBorder" src="http://64.19.142.11/i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/07/27/article-2019236-0D2E670F00000578-126_634x432.jpg" alt="Aftermath: A South Korean man walks by wrecked vehicles tossed aside after the landslide" width="634" height="432" /> <p class="imageCaption">Aftermath: A South Korean man walks by wrecked vehicles tossed aside after the landslide</p> </div> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Subway stations in Seoul were turned into swimming pools, stranded commuters said. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Emergency workers said today at least four people were killed in other accidents related to the severe weather across the area.</span><br /></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Officials are worried as</span> <span style="font-size: 1.2em;">weather experts say more heavy rain was forecast for the next 48</span></p> </div>