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CNN Live Sunday
Cleanup After Typhoon Under Way in Korea
Aired September 14, 2003 - 11:02 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
STEPHEN FRAZIER, CNN ANCHOR: Now to South Korea and the aftermath of typhoon Maemi. The cleanup from this huge storm just underway now. The typhoon left behind a path of destruction and a great amount of death. At least 78 people have been killed, and that number, according to authorities, expected to rise.
CNN's Sohn Jie-Ae is live on the phone from Seoul now with the latest. Jie-Ae, we're going to keep these pictures going while you talk, and they look terrible.
SOHN JIE-AE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They are. The latest that we checked from the authorities here say now that the death toll is now 87 and 28 missing. Authorities say that this is expected to climb, although it probably won't climb rapidly. But as neighborhoods that have cut off connect -- communications and electricity are reconnected, they expect this death toll to rise.
Now, tens of thousands of rescue workers and soldiers are involved in the recovery process right now. What they can do is just shift through the mud and rubble in search of bodies. The devastation, as you said, is extensive. The single worst case involved a tidal wave, causing floodwaters to engulf a small neighborhood in the southern city of Masan. This trapped a number of people in the basement floors of buildings. At least eight people, eight bodies were taken out of one building, and there are several more in this area. So we are seeing a lot of devastation, a lot of recovery work in the process, Stephen.
FRAZIER: Jie-Ae, this is a very sophisticated communications network in Korea with good satellite weather forecasting, too. Was there warning of this storm?
SOHN: We had typhoon warnings days before it actually hit the Korean peninsula, but could not predict how strong the typhoon was going to be. The typhoon hit the Korean peninsula with winds packing about 120 miles per hour and heavy winds, heavy rains, a tidal wave, that they were not able to predict, so many people who were on a long Thanksgiving holiday were really caught unprepared, and that may have caused a lot of the devastation that we're seeing right now, Stephen.
FRAZIER: Well, that is interesting insight. And we're grateful for you taking time out on the phone. Sohn Jie-Ae, thank you for joining us from Seoul.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired September 14, 2003 - 11:02 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
STEPHEN FRAZIER, CNN ANCHOR: Now to South Korea and the aftermath of typhoon Maemi. The cleanup from this huge storm just underway now. The typhoon left behind a path of destruction and a great amount of death. At least 78 people have been killed, and that number, according to authorities, expected to rise.
CNN's Sohn Jie-Ae is live on the phone from Seoul now with the latest. Jie-Ae, we're going to keep these pictures going while you talk, and they look terrible.
SOHN JIE-AE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They are. The latest that we checked from the authorities here say now that the death toll is now 87 and 28 missing. Authorities say that this is expected to climb, although it probably won't climb rapidly. But as neighborhoods that have cut off connect -- communications and electricity are reconnected, they expect this death toll to rise.
Now, tens of thousands of rescue workers and soldiers are involved in the recovery process right now. What they can do is just shift through the mud and rubble in search of bodies. The devastation, as you said, is extensive. The single worst case involved a tidal wave, causing floodwaters to engulf a small neighborhood in the southern city of Masan. This trapped a number of people in the basement floors of buildings. At least eight people, eight bodies were taken out of one building, and there are several more in this area. So we are seeing a lot of devastation, a lot of recovery work in the process, Stephen.
FRAZIER: Jie-Ae, this is a very sophisticated communications network in Korea with good satellite weather forecasting, too. Was there warning of this storm?
SOHN: We had typhoon warnings days before it actually hit the Korean peninsula, but could not predict how strong the typhoon was going to be. The typhoon hit the Korean peninsula with winds packing about 120 miles per hour and heavy winds, heavy rains, a tidal wave, that they were not able to predict, so many people who were on a long Thanksgiving holiday were really caught unprepared, and that may have caused a lot of the devastation that we're seeing right now, Stephen.
FRAZIER: Well, that is interesting insight. And we're grateful for you taking time out on the phone. Sohn Jie-Ae, thank you for joining us from Seoul.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
