WEB DESK
Hundreds of people were evacuated in South Korea after a fire broke out in a shanty town in the capital Seoul on Friday. Roughly 60 homes are reported to have been destroyed in a blaze in Guryong Village. There were no reports of deaths or injuries.
Local media described the area of closely packed makeshift homes as the capital’s last remaining slum. It took more than 900 firefighters and several helicopters five hours to put out the blaze.
President Yoon Suk-yeol called for all-out efforts to minimise the damage and mobilise all available firefighters and equipment, according to his spokeswoman. Mr. Yoon is presently in Switzerland for the World Economic Forum summit at Davos.
The exact cause of the blaze is still unknown, but the area has also been prone to fires and floods, with many homes built using cardboard and wood. Guryong Village has suffered at least 16 fires since 2009.