Five dead, two missing after torrential rain in South Korea
Heavy rain unleashed multiple landslides in southern Sancheong county, officials said
“At least two people have been reported missing, two people are in cardiac arrest and five people were killed“
Updated 19 July 2025
AFP
SEOUL: Landslides and floods triggered by torrential rain swept into South Korean villages on Saturday, killing at least five, the national fire agency said.
Heavy rain unleashed multiple landslides in southern Sancheong county, officials said.
“At least two people have been reported missing, two people are in cardiac arrest and five people were killed,” the national fire agency said in a statement, adding that 16 people have been rescued.
Many of those confirmed dead were found in their homes, having drowned or been buried under the landslide, according to the agency.
Sancheong county authorities told 34,000 residents to “evacuate immediately to a safe area.”
Six people are currently unreachable, including two trapped in a house, according to the local fire department.
South Korea typically experiences monsoon rains in July, and is usually well-prepared. But this week, the country’s southern regions recorded especially torrential downpours, with some of the heaviest hourly rainfall on record, official weather data showed.
Beyond the fatalities from Saturday’s landslide, at least four other people died in rain-related accidents in the last few days.
Scientists say climate change has made weather events around the world more extreme and frequent.
In 2022, South Korea endured record-breaking rains and flooding, which killed at least 11 people.
Trump hopes North Carolina speech will bolster standing on US economy
Trump works to turn around public opinion on economy
Opinion polls show Americans have doubts
Updated 5 sec ago
Reuters
ROCKY MOUNT, North Carolina: US President Donald Trump traveled to the “battleground” state of North Carolina on Friday, seeking to convince Americans that his handling of the economy is sound ahead of a midterm election year that could spell trouble for him and his ruling Republicans. With prices increasing and unemployment up, Trump has his work cut out for him. A Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday showed just 33 percent of US adults approve of how Trump has handled the economy. Trump is set to argue that the US economy is poised for a surge due to his policies and that any problems they are experiencing are the fault of the Democrats. He contends that he has lowered the price of gasoline, imposed tariffs that are generating billions of dollars for the US Treasury and attracted hundreds of billions of dollars in investment pledges by foreign governments.
Audience members hold signs as they wait for President Trump to take the stage for a rally on Dec. 19, 2025 in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. (Getty Images via AFP)
Republicans worry, however, that economic woes could jeopardize their chances in elections next November that will decide whether they will keep control of the House of Representatives and the Senate for the remaining two years of Trump’s term. The speech is taking place at a 9 p.m. rally (0200 GMT Saturday) at the convention center in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. The city is represented by a Democrat in the House, Don Davis, who faces a tough re-election fight in 2026 after the boundaries of his congressional district were redrawn. North Carolina is considered a “battleground” state because its statewide elections are closely contested between Democrats and Republicans. But Trump won the state in 2016, 2020 and 2024. The North Carolina event is a stop on the way to his oceanfront Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, where he plans to spend the Christmas and New Year’s holidays.
The US president has repeatedly said that any economic pain Americans are experiencing should be blamed on policies he inherited from his predecessor, Democratic President Joe Biden.
“Eleven months ago, I inherited a mess, and I’m fixing it,” Trump said in a grievance-filled speech on Wednesday night that he delivered in a jarringly rapid-fire pace. Democrats have argued that Trump himself has bungled the economy, the central issue he campaigned on last year. Trump got some early holiday cheer on Thursday from the Consumer Price Index report for November. It said housing costs rose by the smallest margin in four years. Food costs rose by the least since February. Egg prices — a subject Trump raises regularly — fell for a second month, and by the most in 20 months. The report nonetheless showed that other prices, like beef and electricity, soared. Overall, prices rose 2.7 percent over the year prior. Asked what his message will be in North Carolina, Trump said it would be similar to his last two events, a prime-time address on Wednesday night and a visit to Pennsylvania last week. “We’ve had tremendous success. We inherited a mess, and part of what we inherited was the worst inflation in 48 years,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday. “And now we’re bringing those prices down. I’ll be talking about that.”
