President Lee Declares Entire Tongyeong a Special Disaster Zone After Heavy Rains... Additional Support Including Public Utility Fee Reductions (Update)

From Initial Prioritization of Geoje and Select Areas to Full Coverage of Tongyeong
Increased Central Government Share for Recovery Costs, Disaster Relief Payments Activated

President Lee Jaemyung has declared the entire city of Tongyeong in South Gyeongsang Province a special disaster zone, following the severe damage caused by heavy rainfall that struck the southern region in mid-August.

Yonhap News Agency

Kang Yoojeong, Chief Presidential Spokesperson, said in a written briefing on the 4th, "President Lee Jaemyung additionally declared the entire city of Tongyeong in South Gyeongsang Province a special disaster zone around 18:00 today, based on a joint central investigation, due to the significant damage caused by the heavy rainfall in the southern region between August 15 and 18."

This measure follows the initial designation on the 21st of last month, which prioritized the entire city of Geoje in South Gyeongsang Province as well as heavily affected areas such as Sanyang-eup and Bongpyeong-dong in Tongyeong as special disaster zones.

In particular, the government conducted extensive on-site inspections, extending the damage reporting period significantly in consideration of Tongyeong's many island and coastal areas and the severe scale of the damage, to ensure that no private property losses were omitted. After a detailed central joint inspection confirmed that the criteria for special designation were met, the coverage was expanded to include all areas of Tongyeong.

A region can be designated as a special disaster zone when, in the case of a city, county, or district, the amount of damage exceeds 2.5 times the threshold required for central government support, or in the case of an eup, myeon, or dong (town or neighborhood), it exceeds one quarter of that threshold. Once designated, up to 80% of the recovery costs initially borne by the local government are instead provided by the central government, greatly reducing their financial burden. Residents receive disaster relief funds supported by the central government, and, in addition to 25 types of assistance already offered to regular disaster zones (such as national and local tax payment deferrals), they will also receive 13 additional forms of support, including reductions in health insurance premiums, and electricity, telecommunications, city gas, and district heating fees.

Chief Spokesperson Kang stated, "The government will promptly develop and support recovery plans so that affected residents can return to their daily lives as soon as possible."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.