Seoul's Confucius' Shrine damaged while pruning trees

▲ This picture shows the damaged roof of the east main gate of the Seonggyungwan Munmyo Confucian Shrine.

Seoul, March 8th (Yonhap) -- A part of the Seonggyungwan Munmyo Confucian Shrine located in the district of Jongno-gu, Seoul has been damaged.

On Monday at 9:21 a.m., a 9-ton ladder truck was seen falling on the roof of the east main gate of the Seonggyungwan Munmyo Confucian Shrine, one of the most prominent historic sites in Korea.

The accident occurred while the Jongno-gu office was in the process of moving a ladder truck into the Munmyo Confucian Shrine using a 20 tons crane car. The ladder truck was needed in order prune trees--including the 400-year-old Gingko Tree located at the Munmyo Confucian Shrine and also known as a Natural Monument (No.59) in Korea.

It is reported the ladder truck fell on the roof of the east main gate when the sling belt broke whilst moving the truck. A 4.7m long and 6.5m wide piece of the roof was damaged and the total repair amount is still being calculated.

In order to repair such damages, fire departments and district offices are currently working on the maintenance work by deploying a total of 34 people and eight vehicles.

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