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Flooding in Seoul lifts up manhole cover and sweeps two people inside

The South Korean capital is being devastated by record-level flooding (Picture: Reuters/REX)
The South Korean capital is being devastated by record-level flooding (Picture: Reuters/REX)

Torrential rainfall has been wreaking havoc in South Korea’s capital and is turning the streets into rivers.

Gushing floodwater is thought to have forced open the cover of a manhole in Seoul’s Seocho-gu district last night.

Two people were then swept inside, and despite rescuers deploying an underwater robot, they are still yet to be found, MBC TV reports.

Fire chiefs say the manhole leads to the Han River, and that floodwater is flowing so relentlessly that rescuers had no chance to get inside.

At least 10 people have been killed and seven others are missing as heavy rain, accompanied by thunderstorms, has pounded Seoul.

It’s the most rainfall ever recorded since South Korea began collecting data, and has seen vehicles submerged and public transport systems overwhelmed.

Commuters slowly returned to work on Tuesday morning after emergency crews worked overnight to clean up much of the mess.

But there were concerns about further damage as torrential rain was forecast to continue for days.

People walk across a street during heavy rainfall in the Gangbuk district of Seoul on August 8, 2022. (Photo by YONHAP / AFP) / - South Korea OUT / NO ARCHIVES - RESTRICTED TO SUBSCRIPTION USE (Photo by -/YONHAP/AFP via Getty Images)
South Korea has had the most rainfall this week since records began (Picture: Getty Images)
Streets in Seoul have been turned into rivers by gushing rainwater
Streets in Seoul have been turned into rivers by gushing rainwater
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Xinhua/REX/Shutterstock (13079204c) Photo taken with a mobile phone shows a road damaged by heavy rains in Seoul National University in Seoul, South Korea, Aug. 9, 2022. Eight people were killed and six others went missing as South Korea's metropolitan region was pounded by heavy rains, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters said Tuesday. Over 100 millimeters per hour of rains hit the capital Seoul, the western port city of Incheon and Gyeonggi province, which surrounds Seoul, on Monday night. South Korea Seoul Heavy Rains - 09 Aug 2022
Fears of further damage remain as heavy rain is expected to continue (Picture: REX/Shutterstock)
epa10111999 Pavement blocks are washed away by heavy rainfall of over 100 millimeters per hour, the heaviest rainfall in 80 years, in Seoul, South Korea, 08 August 2022 (issued 09 August 2022). The record downpours battered Seoul and surrounding areas. EPA/YONHAP SOUTH KOREA OUT
Pavement blocks are washed away by heavy rainfall travelling at over 100 millimeters per hour (Picture: EPA)
epa10111996 A sinkhole on a road in southern Seoul, South Korea, 09 August 2022, as heavy rainfall of over 100 millimeters per hour, the heaviest in 80 years, battered Seoul and surrounding areas the previous night. EPA/YONHAP SOUTH KOREA OUT
A sinkhole on a road in southern Seoul (Picture: EPA)

While most of Seoul metropolitan area’s subway services were back to normal operations, dozens of roads and riverside parking lots remained closed due to safety concerns.

President Yoon Suk Yeol called for public employers and private companies to adjust their commuting hours.

He also urged aggressive action in restoring damaged facilities and evacuating people in danger areas to prevent further deaths.

Moon Hong-sik, spokesperson for Seoul’s Defence Ministry, said the military was prepared to deploy troops to help with recovery efforts if requested by cities or regional governments.

The rain, caused by a collision of dry cold air coming from the north and hot humid air from the south, began on Monday morning and intensified through the evening.

A man stands among vehicles abandoned in flooded area during heavy rain in Seoul, South Korea, August 8, 2022. Yonhap via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. SOUTH KOREA OUT. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE.
People were forced to abandon their vehicles as the streets were flooded (Picture: Reuters)
A woman using an umbrella takes photographs of a road that was flooded after torrential rain, at a traditional market in Seoul, South Korea, August 9, 2022. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji
More torrential rain is expected to come throughout the week (Picture: Reuters)
A shack damaged by torrential rain of the previous day is seen at a shanty area in Seoul, South Korea, August 9, 2022. Yonhap via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. SOUTH KOREA OUT. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES.
A shack is left damaged and waterlogged by the flooding (Picture: Reuters)
A man makes his way through flooded area during heavy rain in Seoul, South Korea, August 8, 2022. Yonhap via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. SOUTH KOREA OUT. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE.
A man wades through the water in South Korea’s capital (Picture: Reuters)
epa10111995 People wade though an inundated road in southern Seoul, South Korea, 08 August 2022 (issued 09 August 2022), as heavy rainfall of over 100 millimeters per hour, the heaviest in 80 years, battered Seoul and surrounding areas. EPA/YONHAP SOUTH KOREA OUT
Seven people have been reported missing as a result of the flooding (Picture: EPA)

Nearly 800 buildings in Seoul and nearby cities were damaged while at least 790 people were forced to evacuate from their homes, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety said.

People were seen wading through thigh-high waters on Monday night in streets near the Gangnam subway station, one of Seoul’s most bustling business and leisure districts, where passenger cars, taxis and buses were stuck in mud-brown waters.

Commuters evacuated as water cascaded down the stairs of the Isu subway station like a waterfall.

In the nearby city of Seongnam, a rain-weakened hillside collapsed on to a university football field.

A fast-flowing river is pictured from the Sinlimgyo bridge, in Seoul, South Korea August 8, 2022 in this screengrab obtained from a video. @SS_Momoko/Handout via REUTERS. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT.
Fast flowing river water flows under Seoul’s Sinlimgyo bridge (Picture: Reuters)
A bridge is submerged by torrential rain of the previous day at Han river in Seoul, South Korea, August 9, 2022. Yonhap via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. SOUTH KOREA OUT. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
A bridge is submerged by torrential rain as water flows at an unmanageable rate (Picture: Reuters)
A car damaged by flood water is seen on the street after heavy rainfall at Gangnam district in Seoul on August 9, 2022. (Photo by Jung Yeon-je / AFP) (Photo by JUNG YEON-JE/AFP via Getty Images)
Many vehicles and buildings have been badly damaged (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)
epa10112098 A worker removes a fallen tree at the site of a landslide in Seoul's Gwanak Ward, South Korea, 09 August 2022, after torrential rain pounded the capital city and parts of central South Korea overnight. EPA/YONHAP SOUTH KOREA OUT
A worker removes a fallen tree following a landslide in Seoul’s Gwanak Ward (Picture: EPA)
epa10112097 A damaged road inside Seoul National University's Gwanak Campus in Seoul, South Korea, 09 August 2022, after torrential rain pounded the capital city and parts of central South Korea overnight. EPA/YONHAP SOUTH KOREA OUT
A road is left broken into pieces inside Seoul National University’s Gwanak Campus (Picture: EPA)

Rescue workers failed to reach three people who called for help before drowning in a basement home in the Gwanak district of southern Seoul on Monday night.

Another woman drowned at her home in the nearby Dongjak district, where a public worker died while clearing up fallen trees, likely from electrocution.

Three people were found dead in the debris of landslides and a collapsed bus station in the nearby cities of Gwangju and Hwaseong.

Rainstorms also pounded North Korea, where authorities issued heavy rain warnings for the southern and western parts of the country.

The North’s official Rodong Sinmun newspaper described the rain as potentially ‘disastrous’ and called for measures to protect farmland and prevent flooding on the Taedong river, which flows through the capital, Pyongyang.

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