SEOUL—Five bodies were retrieved from a tunnel drowned by strong rains in central South Korea on Sunday, firefighting officials said, bringing the country's death toll from the days of severe rains to 31.
The five victims were discovered on Saturday from a bus that had become buried near a flooded underpass in Cheongju after rescue personnel began an underwater search early Sunday, according to authorities.
As of 6 a.m., the Ministry of Interior and Safety said that 26 persons had been killed and 10 were missing. (2100 GMT on Saturday) after torrential rains caused landslides and floods across the nation, with 7,540 people evacuated.
Because it was unclear how many people and automobiles were trapped underwater, the casualties from the flooded tunnel were not included in the ministry's figures.
“We are focusing on the search operation as there are likely more people there,” Seo Jeong-il, head of the West Cheongju fire station, told reporters.
President Yoon Suk Yeol, who is currently on a trip abroad, has directed Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to mobilize all possible resources to reduce casualties, according to his office, as further heavy rain is predicted on the Korean peninsula on Sunday.
