(LEAD) Heavy rain forecast to return this week after downpours leave one missing, scores evacuated

▲ A stream in eastern Seoul is flooded due to heavy rains on July 11, 2023. (Yonhap)

▲ A man rides a bicycle across a bridge over the rising Jungnang Stream in Seoul on July 11, 2023, amid torrential rains. (Yonhap)

(LEAD) rain-damage

(LEAD) Heavy rain forecast to return this week after downpours leave one missing, scores evacuated

(ATTN: RECASTS headline, lead; UPDATES with new info in paras 1-5, 12; ADDS photo)

SEOUL, July 12 (Yonhap) -- Heavy rainfall is expected to return across the country later this week, weather officials said Wednesday, following downpours that left one person missing and scores evacuated the previous day.

The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said a well-developed stationary front will bring significant monsoon rains to the entire country starting Thursday.

During Thursday and Friday, 50 to 150 millimeters of rain is expected to fall across the country, except for Jeju Island, which will experience 5 to 40 mm of rain, the agency said.

Some areas in the greater Seoul region, Gangwon Province and North Chungcheong Province are forecast to receive 200 to 250 mm during the two days.

Rainfall is predicted to persist until next Monday with the stationary front oscillating north and south near the country until early next week, the weather agency said.

On Tuesday, an elderly woman was reported missing and scores of people were evacuated in heavy rains that swept across the country.

The downpours lashed many parts of the country, including Seoul and Busan, on Tuesday and the rainfall continued in some southern regions on Wednesday.

On Tuesday afternoon, a 68-year-old woman went missing near a stream in Busan, 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters said. Firefighters and police continued their search for her on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, a 75-year-old man was found dead in a stream in Yeoju, about 60 kilometers southeast of Seoul. Authorities classified the incident as a safety accident rather than a casualty caused directly by the heavy rainfall.

A total of 52 people from 33 families were evacuated in Seoul, Busan, Gwangju and North Gyeongsang Province. As of Wednesday morning, 42 people from 26 households had not yet returned to their homes.

The headquarters also reported temporary flooding of six houses in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, and Wonju, Gangwon Province.

Seven vehicles were submerged In Busan and about 6,600 households experienced power outages in Busan, Pohang and Wanju. In Daegu, a 200-meter-long wall at a demolition site collapsed, damaging 29 vehicles.

In Seoul, a section of subway Line 1 temporarily halted operations for about 15 minutes on Tuesday afternoon.

On Wednesday morning, 19 roads in Busan, Gyeonggi Province and other regions remained closed and access to trails across 17 national parks was also blocked.

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