Days of torrential rains have wreaked havoc across much of South Korea, shedding light on the importance of insurance coverage, which can help secure personal and business assets, as well as minimizing significant financial losses. As of 6 a.m. Tuesday, 1,486 cases of property damage had been reported to authorities -- 912 involving public facilities and 574 for private property -- according to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters. Storm and flood coverage from private ins

The frequency of school violence is higher in upper grades than lower grades, a survey has found, with 1 in 3 high school victims experiencing peer-to-peer violence almost every day, data showed Monday. According to an in-depth analysis of school violence conducted by the Korea Educational Development Institute, 0.3 percent of high schoolers reported being victims of school violence in the past year, while the rates for elementary and middle school students were 2.9 percent and 1 percent, respec

Four schools announced early summer breaks on Monday, as incessant heavy rains ripped through parts of South Korea, leaving much of the country waterlogged over the weekend. The Ministry of Education also said on the same day that another 18 schools had tweaked their schedules as of Sunday at 10 p.m. to keep students and teaching staff safe in the wake of heavy rains. By region, one middle school in Seoul decided to shorten school hours, while another middle school in the southeastern city of Ul

Heavy rain, accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning, is expected to continue over the weekend, with flight operations likely to be canceled or delayed. The Korea Meteorological Administration forecast heavy rain of as much as 50 to 100 millimeters per hour in the North and South Chungcheong provinces and North Jeolla Province from late Friday night. More than 400 millimeters of rain is forecast for the two areas through Saturday. In particular, the country is expected to be shrouded in a stro

Two days of torrential downpours and fierce winds have battered major parts of Seoul, leaving 4,000 households without power and major motorways closed as the city grapples with the onslaught of rough weather. Electricity outages swept Seodaemun-gu’s Hongje-dong in Seoul late Thursday around midnight, after a falling tree downed a high-voltage power line in the area, leaving more than 2,000 households without electricity overnight, according to the central government headquarters in charge

Airplane emergency exit seats of four Korean airlines will be initially assigned to uniformed personnel, including police officers and firefighters, in an effort to prevent the reoccurrence of an incident in which a passenger opened an emergency exit door before landing, the ruling party said Thursday. During a consultation meeting between the ruling People Power Party and the government, Rep. Park Dae-chul, the head of the party’s policy committee, said his party has agreed to introduce t

Six linguists and educators were awarded on Thursday by Education Minister Lee Ju-ho for spreading the Korean language across the globe. The Education Ministry said the award is designed to recognize their contribution in effectively administrating Korean language education at a time when the interest in the Korean language and culture is growing. Kim Seong-mi, a teacher at Fort Lee High School in New Jersey; Minh-Anh Hodge, superintendent of Tacoma Public Schools; Supaporn Boonrung, a professor

The most common type of cancer among women is breast cancer, and among all age groups, the incidence of the disease is highest among women in their 40s, a study showed Wednesday. According to the study conducted by the Korea Breast Cancer Society, breast cancer accounted for 24.6 percent of cancers in women, explaining that it has been the most common cancer for women since 2016. Only 0.4 percent of males were diagnosed with breast cancer in the same year. The highest breast cancer rates were am

Boshintang, or dog meat stew, has long been a staple for South Koreans to beat the heat during “chobok,” the beginning of the hottest summer days according to the lunar calendar that falls on July 11 this year. However, Koreans remain divided over the issue. While a number of pet owners regard dogs as companion animals, others say eating them is a distinctive aspect of the country’s culinary culture and a basic right to determine one’s food choices. On Saturday, some 200

The Korean National Police Agency’s National Office of Investigation said Monday that they are investigating 939 cases of what are popularly being referred to as “ghost children” in an ongoing nationwide probe to discover unregistered babies. So far, police have confirmed that 34 of the unregistered babies have died. Investigators are looking into the possibility of 11 babies having been killed by their own parents, according to local reports quoting police. Nineteen other case

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Monday that it had signed an agreement with the Korea Housing Association, Daewoo E&C and Habitat for Humanity Korea to team up to help repair houses in vulnerable residential areas. Under the partnership, the city government will provide administrative support and recommend houses that need improved habitat environments, while the KHA and Daewoo E&C will financially aid the home repair services. Habitat for Humanity Korea will be in charge of overs

A series of alleged infanticide cases that have emerged in an ongoing nationwide investigation into “ghost children” has laid bare the dark stories of South Korea’s mothers of unwanted pregnancies and how the country lacks protective measures and adequate sex education, according to observers here. Mothers not wanting to confess their pregnancies to their parents or endure economic hardships, in particular, have contributed to the infanticides, according to a study published by

Seoul Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon said Thursday he would deploy native English-speaking teachers at all public schools in Seoul, along with additional native teachers for schools with large student populations, in line with the government’s efforts to enhance public education quality. Addressing the alarmingly high spending on private education, especially in English, despite the declining student population, Cho said he plans to deploy English-speaking teachers at all elementary

Police said Tuesday they had launched an investigation into a progressive group of unionized teachers for mass-mailing teachers in Seoul to ask for their participation in opposing Japan’s discharge of water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant. The Seoul branch of the Korea Teachers and Education Workers’ Union reportedly sent out mass emails to 70,000 school teachers based in Seoul under the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education last month urging them to take part in a signature

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Wednesday it has teamed up with the National Assembly and Hyundai Motor Group to operate self-driving buses in the Yeouido area of western Seoul, in an effort to improve the convenience of transportation for visitors. The 13-seater autonomous bus developed by the South Korean automaker began service on Wednesday at noon. It runs on a 3.1-kilometer route connecting a parking lot in Yeouido to the National Assembly building. Only two shuttle buses will operat

The Korean National Police Agency’s National Office of Investigation said Tuesday that they are investigating 193 cases of what are being referred to as “ghost children,” babies whose births were never registered with local authorities, as part of the government’s latest efforts to discover unregistered children nationwide. Police said that they had received a total of 209 reports of unregistered babies as of Tuesday. The whereabouts of 20 nameless babies have been iden

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said his proposal of bringing foreign babysitters to ease the child care burden of households would reverse the waning birth rate as he marked one year in office since his reelection on Monday. Addressing the ever-decreasing birth rate as the city government’s biggest task to tackle, the mayor said the system would operate as a pilot program in the latter half of the year, and the government would later decide to implement the system. The city government will also fi

Illuminated by the vibrant colors of the rainbow, thousands from the LGBTQ+ community and their supporters congregated for the 24th Seoul Queer Culture Festival in Euljiro, central Seoul, Saturday. Participants from various generations donned colorful attire, waved rainbow flags and marched through the city's central district, standing together against rising anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment and advocating for equal rights. Jang Sun-young, a 70-year-old, was among those who paraded through the streets

A new subway line connecting areas in the western part of the Seoul metropolitan area will start service on Saturday, with many hoping it will reduce commutes for office workers residing northwest, west and southwest of Seoul. The Daegok-Sosa double-track subway line will bridge Goyang, just northwest of Seoul in Gyeonggi Province, to Bucheon, southwest of Seoul in Gyeonggi Province, via Gimpo Airport in western Seoul. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the new subw

South Korean tax authorities have launched tax investigations targeting star lecturers at major private academies as part of the government’s efforts to identify alleged irregularities in the operations of hagwon, or private education institutions. According to local reports and education insiders on Friday, the National Tax Service conducted a special tax audit of Hyun Woo-jin on Thursday, a math instructor at Megastudy, one of Korea’s biggest hagwon companies. The NTS is reportedly