Korea
Country Report
1999

Ministry of Government Administration andHome AffairsContents
Ⅰ．Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Activities
1. Implementation of Disaster Prevention and Preparedness in 1999
1) Inspection and Maintenance of the Disaster-Prone Areas
2) Inspection and Maintenance of Large-Scale Construction Sites
3) Inspection and Maintenance of Disaster Prevention Facilities
4) Securing Equipment and Facilities for Emergency Countermeasures5) Special Fund for Natural Disaster Countermeasures
2. Disaster Prevention Education, Drills, and Public Relation
1) Disaster Prevention Education
2) Emergency Drills and Practicea) Exercise under computer-simulated disaster conditionsb) Comprehensive exercise for disaster managementc) Emergency drills specific to each region
3. Public Relations for Disaster Prevention
4. Implementation of the Disaster Prevention Plan
5. Risk Assessment Evaluation System of Disaster Impact (RAESDI)
6. Implementation of Improvement of Disaster Prone Areas
7. Implementation of Improvement of Safety of Small Rivers
8. Management of Disasters in 1999
9. National Institute for Disaster Prevention
10. Korea Disaster Prevention Association
Ⅱ．Disaster Statistics (Sep. 1998 - Aug. 1999)
1. Summary
2. Reports on the Damage Caused by Typhoons and Floods

Ⅰ．Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Activities
1. Implementation of Disaster Prevention and Preparedness in 1999
To reduce the loss of life, property damage, and economic hardship caused by natural disasters such as floods andwindstorms during the rainy season, the Korean government has designated the period from March 1 to May 31 in
1999 as the "Disaster Preparedness Period." Several action plans were put into practice during this period.

1) Inspection and Maintenance of the Disaster-Prone Areas
Inspecting and maintaining 399 Disaster-Prone Areas susceptible to inundation, collapse, or isolation by typhoons
and floods.

2) Inspection and Maintenance of Large-Scale Construction Sites
Preparing the "Disaster Preparedness Plan" and assigning government officials to monitor 1,004 large-scaleconstruction sites ($5 million or more) such as subways, golf courses, dams, etc.

3) Inspection and Maintenance of Disaster Prevention Facilities
Inspecting and repairing 5,818 disaster prevention facilities including retaining walls, embankments, reservoirs,etc.

4) Securing Equipment and Facilities for Emergency Countermeasures
Equipment and facilities for emergency countermeasures have been secured according to need averaged over thelast ten years.

5) Special Fund for Natural Disaster Countermeasures
The total of $203 million (from 1997∼1999) has been allocated in 16 cities and 232 districts for pre-disasterprevention activities and emergency recovery during severe natural disasters.

2. Disaster Prevention Education, Drills, and Public Relation
1) Disaster Prevention Education
42,984 staff members were educated from March 29 to May 14 of 1999 to enhance their ability to cope withnatural disasters. The program included planning, managing critical situations, reporting damage, working on
recovery plans, and studying relevant laws.

2) Emergency Drills and PracticeIn order to enhance the prevention and rapid response to disasters, exercises under computer-simulated disasterconditions, a comprehensive exercise for disaster prevention, and emergency drills specific to each region werecarried out with community residents and related organizations during the period from May 12 to May 14 in 1999.

a) Exercise under computer-simulated disaster conditions
To develop the ability for managing disasters, the exercise under computer-simulated disaster conditions byvarious related was carried out from May 12 to 14 in 1999.

b) Comprehensive exercise for disaster management
On May 25, 1999, a comprehensive exercise for disaster management was carried out at the Sumjin River basin
under a simulated condition of a hit by a typhoon with the intensity of Typhoon YANNY (July 1998). The programof drills included life saving, emergency relief, recover measures, etc.

c) Emergency drills specific to each region
Local governments carried out their own emergency drills for conditions that are specific to their own regions on
May 15, 1999.
To cope with earthquakes effectively, the government carried out an exercise under computer-simulated
earthquake conditions on April 15, May 14, and September 15, 1999.

3. Public Relations for Disaster Prevention
Korea has designated May 25 as "National Disaster Prevention Day" to promote the public participation andawareness of disaster prevention.
The main events for the "National Disaster Prevention Day" are inspection of disaster prevention facilities andequipment, drills, a campaign for disaster prevention, photo display of disaster stricken areas and their recovery
processes, and a contest for disaster prevention posters

4. Implementation of the Disaster Prevention Plan
To cope with disasters which are taking more diverse forms and larger in scale, the government has formulated
the Basic Five-Year Disaster Prevention Plan and the Yearly Disaster Prevention Action Plan.
During the Fifth Basic Disaster Prevention Plan Period (1997-2001) the government will funnel more than about$26 billion to 22 key areas such as afforestation, flood control, disaster prevention, technology development, etc.
Consistent with this plan, the government has invested more than $4 billion to 22 key items in 1999.

5. Risk Assessment Evaluation System of Disaster Impact (RAESDI)
The RAESDI is designed to protect lives and property in downstream areas from the impact of large scale
development.
Since the RAESDI was introduced in 1996, a total of 62 projects has been scrutinized by the end of August 1999.
The result of deliberation was as follows; 53 projects approved, one project rejected, and 8 project drafts analyzed.

6. Implementation of Improvement of Disaster Prone Areas
Korea identified 399 sites most susceptible to inundation, collapse, and isolation by typhoons and floods, andlabeled them as Disaster Prone Areas. A total of $1.1 billion will be invested for wide-ranging improvements from1998 to 2002.
Under this plan, $30 million was invested to improve 44 disaster prone areas in 1998, and $197 million is being
invested to 108 areas in 1999.

7. Implementation of Improvement of Safety of Small Rivers
Small rivers in Korea are vulnerable to overflow and one of the main causes of flooding. Thus, from 1995 to 2016,
25,684 ㎞ is earmarked for improvement with the investment of more than $9.5 billion. The first step is torefurbish 4,450㎞ from 1995 to 2004 at the cost of about $2.1 billion.
In 1999, 287 small river sites totaling 200㎞ were refurbished at the cost of $67 million.

8. Management of Disasters in 1999
The Korean government has designated the period from June 15 to October 15 as the "Disaster Countermeasures
Period" and Korea National Disaster Prevention and Countermeasures Headquarters (KNDPCH) and competent
local authorities are prepared to manage possible disasters during this period 24 hours a day.
During the period from July 31 to August 4, 1999, typhoon OLGA and heavy rainfall occurred due to climatic
disturbance caused by a humid air inflow from the south and high pressure from the northern Pacific.

9. National Institute for Disaster Prevention
National Institute for Disaster Prevention (NIDP) was established on September 2, 1997
to conduct systematic and scientific research in the field of disaster prevention.
NIDP has spearheaded 17 research projects such as 「Development of Guidelines for Design of Flood Storage
Reservoirs」,「Study on the Development of the Flood Insurance Program」,「Basic Study for Establishment ofthe Small River Design Guidelines」, etc.
NIDP is currently involved in 16 research projects such as 「Analysis of Water Management Effect based on theDisaster Impact Assessment 」 and 「Effective Methods for Disaster Damage Estimation 」.

10. Korea Disaster Prevention Association
The Korea Disaster Prevention Association has been established to strengthen the nation's capability to prevent
disasters and to stimulate exchange of information on March 9, 1999.
It has 10 basic missions such as exchange of information with other research institutions at home and abroad andconducting academic symposiums, publication of relevant data, increasing public awareness, and delegating work
related to disaster prevention

Ⅱ．Disaster Statistics (Sep. 1998 - Aug. 1999)
1. Summary
During the period of September to December in 1998, 57 people died and $229 million worth of property damage
was incurred due to typhoons.
During the period of January to December in 1999, 79 people died and approximately $886 million worth ofproperty damage was incurred due to four major disasters (blizzards in January and heavy rains and typhoons inAugust).
Hence, during the period from September 1, 1998 to August 31, 1999, the total damage caused by five natural
disasters was 136 casualties and $1.115 billion in property damage. (Detailed damages are given in Table 1).

2. Reports on the Damage Caused by Typhoons and Floods<Table-1> Total Damages caused by Natural Disaster during the Period from Sep. 1998 to Aug. 1999
Classification

Units

Jan. - Aug., 1999

Total

PersonSep.- Dec.,
1998
57

Casualties(Dead or Missing)

79

136

Displaced Person

Family/Person1,261/
4,827

7,060/
25,4288,321/
30,255Farmland Lostor Buried

ha982

3,925

4,907

House Destroyedor Damaged

Unit

308

1,913

2,221

Property Damage

U.S.
$ million

229

886

1,115