South Korea wildfires kill at least 24 people, force tens of thousands to evacuate

Seoul — South Korea's worst wildfires on record have scorched a massive swath of the country's southeast over the past five days and killed at least 24 people, according to the national fire service. The combination of strong winds and dry weather has enabled the fires to spread frighteningly across the region.

As of Wednesday afternoon, an estimated 44,000 acres had been scorched according to Korea Forest Service, with at least 300 buildings destroyed and almost 30,000 people forced to evacuate from their homes, according to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters.

In a televised address, South Korea's acting President Han Duck-soo said the wildfires that began last Friday were worse than many previous ones.