THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: At least 1 dead and 11 injured from fires in Gangwon-do province

The fire agency is maintaining the highest level 3 alert -- a level restricted to incident affecting the entire nation.
The South Korean government declared a state of national disaster.
The fire broke out on Thursday evening in Goseong-gun in Gangwon-do Province around 7-P.M., Korea time, has now been 100-percent extinguished.
But this doesn't mean that the fire is completely out there are some hot spots remaining, and the firefighters are still working on them.
The Gangwon Fire Headquarters says a spark at a transformer near a resort caused a fire and it spread to the mountain.
The headquarters did confirm some details saying at least one person was killed by the fire.
The exact number of injuries has not been confirmed yet as well..but local news outlets are reporting that at least 11 people have been hurt.
More than four-thousand residents have evacuated to schools or gymnasiums.
And more than one hundred homes in the area are reportedly destroyed as well.
In terms of the size of the blaze, around 250 hectares of forest have been burned so far in Goseong, similar to the size of the Seoul's financial district Yeouido.
Officials say the strong winds made the fire spread quickly once moving at 5 kilometers per hour.
A strong wind warning is issued in the region and because of the strong wind the fire spread to the city of Sokcho, as well.
The Ministry of Defense says 16,500 soldiers have been dispatched to help tackle the fire, with 32 helicopters and 26 fire trucks in place.
The ministry also announced it will provide military food rations to around 68-hundred people.


South Korean President Moon Jae-in is urging related authorities to utilize all available resources to cope with the devastating fire in Gangwon-do Province.
The president revisited the crisis management center around 11 AM for an update.
Earlier on Friday, shortly after the midnight, the president held an emergency meeting at the top office, where he ordered all hands to the pump to contain the fire.
The president also ordered the Prime Minister to closely monitor the situation while taking necessary actions like holding an emergency ministers' meeting.


South Korea's National Assembly is holding its last plenary session of the March parliamentary session, with lawmakers voting on over 1-hundred pending bills.
Another agenda on the table today includes. ratifying the South Korea-U.S. defense cost-sharing deal.
It calls for Seoul to contribute 9-hundred-25 million U.S. dollars this year -- to help cover the expense of stationing American troops on the peninsula.
That's up 8-point-2 percent from last year, and it's a one year deal.


Former German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel says. nuclear weapons are North Korea's life insurance and it's unlikely that the regime will give them up anytime soon.
Following his trip to Pyeongyang in late March, Gabriel told a German daily newspaper that North Korea's nuclear weapons prevent outside forces from trying to change the regime.
Saying it would take time and confidence building to achieve denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, the former minister added that South Korea seems to be in need of some breathing room to build trust with North Korea within UN sanctions.

Source: Arirang News