Fire in South Korean Hospital Kills 19

TEMPO.CO, Seoul - A fire in a hospital in the South Korean city of Miryang killed 19
people and injured more than 50 others, a local fire official said on Friday, Jan. 26.

The blaze suspected to have started in a first-floor emergency room. Meanwhile, a fire station
official told Reuters the situation was developing quickly and the death toll was expected to rise
further.

The fire started around 7:30 a.m. (22:30 GMT) at the rear of the emergency room of Sejong
Hospital and most of it had been put out after a few hours, Choi Man-woo, the head of Miryang
fire station, told a televised media briefing.

Miryang is about 270 km (168 miles) southeast of Seoul.

Firefighters were still in the process of evacuating the roughly 200 people inside the main
hospital building and nursing home directly behind the hospital, Choi said.

Local news channel YTN showed black smoke billowing from the windows and entrance to the
hospital and flames flickering.

South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon ordered all possible equipment and personnel be
used to fight the blaze, adding the hospital should be quickly searched to save as many lives as
possible, his office said in a statement.

The fire comes just a month after a fire claimed 29 lives in an eight-story center in Jecheon City.

Source: https://en.tempo.co/
8.2 Magnitude Quake Hits off Alaska: USGS

Washington: A powerful earthquake of magnitude 8.2 struck off the southern coast of
Alaska early Tuesday, prompting tsunami warnings.

The quake struck at 0931 GMT in the Gulf of Alaska, 280 kilometers (175 miles) southeast of
the town of Kodiak, the US Geological Survey said. The epicenter was 10 kilometers under the
seabed.

Tsunami warnings were issued for Alaska and the west coast of Canada, the National Tsunami
Warning Center said.

Less-ominous tsunami watches were issued for the US west coast, the entire coasts of California
and Oregon and part of Washington state.

In Alaska, authorities urged coast dwellers to seek safety.

"If you are located in this coastal area, move inland to higher ground," the Anchorage Office of
Emergency Management said.

"Tsunami warnings mean that a tsunami with significant inundation is possible or is already
occurring. Tsunamis are a series of waves dangerous many hours after initial arrival time. The
first wave may not be the largest." (AFP)

Source: http://en.metrotvnews.com