Dozens of wildland fires broke out as dry winds swept across South Korea in March 2025. Blazes began igniting on March 21, prompting evacuations as well as the deployment of thousands of personnel and more than 100 helicopters to combat the fires, according to news reports.
Smoke from some of the larger fires is visible in this image, acquired by the MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) on NASA’s Aqua satellite on March 22. One of the plumes billowed from an area burning near Andong in Uiseong County. More than 1,000 people evacuated the area, several sections of highway and a rail line were forced to close, and an ancient temple was destroyed by the flames.
To the south, another large smoke plume originated from rural Sancheong County. A large, fast-moving fire had burned over 500 hectares (2 square miles) by the evening of March 22, the Associated Press reported, and caused multiple injuries and deaths. Mountainous terrain and strong winds made containment efforts challenging.
Officials issued strong wind advisories for several counties on March 21 and 22 and discouraged people from burning trash and agricultural products. Dry weather also contributed to the fire risk. March through May is the driest time of year in the region.
As of March 24, many of the fires had been extinguished, according to officials cited in news reports, and the large blazes in Uiseong and Sancheong counties were each about two-thirds contained. In total, the fires were reported to have burned at least 8,700 hectares (34 square miles). The government declared a state of disaster for several of the affected regions.
References & Resources
- The Associated Press (2025, March 22) 2 firefighters die in South Korea as dry winds fuel dozens of wildfires. Accessed March 24, 2025.
- The Korea Herald (2025, March 24) South Korea battles wildfires spreading in southeastern region. Accessed March 24, 2025.
- National Disaster and Safety Portal (2025, March) Emergency Alerts. Accessed March 24, 2025.
- The New York Times (2025, March 24) Wildfires Erupt in South Korea, Killing 4 and Forcing Thousands From Homes. Accessed March 24, 2025.
NASA Earth Observatory image by Michala Garrison, using MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview . Story by Lindsey Doermann .
