South Korea struggles to contain wildfires that have killed 28

A helicopter dumps water on a mountain after a wildfire broke out in Cheongsong, South Korea, Thursday, March 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

CHEONGSONG, South Korea — 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 28 people, forced at least 37,800 to flee their homes and destroyed thousands of structures and vehicles.

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.

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 showed “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 38,665 hectares (95,543 acres) of land, the disaster response center said Thursday. Observers say that’s the worst figure of its kind in South Korea. The center said the blazes have also injured 32 people and forced more than 37,800 people to evacuate. More than 2,600 structures, including homes, factories and other buildings, as well as vehicles, were damaged or destroyed.

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.

Yong Jun Chang, Hyung-jin Kim and Kim Tong-hyung, The Associated Press

Hyung-jin Kim and Kim Tong-hyung reported from Seoul, South Korea. Associated Press photographer Ahn Young-joon in Cheongsong, South Korea, contributed to this report.