[UPDATES] Earthquake injures 14 people, causes slight damage in South Korea

By Park Sae-jin Posted : September 13, 2016, 10:20 Updated : September 13, 2016, 17:43

The wall of a rural home is left broken by an earthquake in the southeastern city of Gyeongju. [Yonhap News Photo]


South Korea reported slight damage Tuesday from a 5.8-magnitude earthquake in its southeastern region that left 14 people injured. Four reactors in a nuclear power plant suspended operations for safety checks.

An initial quake with a magnitude of 5.1 occurred at 7:44 pm (1044 GMT) Monday, with its epicenter about nine kilometers (5.4 miles) southwest of Gyeongju, said the Korea Meteorological Administration.

Another quake with a magnitude of 5.8 rocked the same region at 8:32 pm. The second tremor was felt across South Korea, shaking buildings even in Seoul about 280 kilometers away from the epicenter.

It was the strongest quake to date since South Korea started collecting related data, triggering a wave of aftershocks overnight in Gyeongju and nearby areas.

At least 14 people were injured, including an 80-year-old woman hit by a falling TV set in an apartment building in Gyeongju, said the Ministry of Public Safety and Security. Six people were sent home after receiving treatment in hospitals.

The ministry reported 642 cases of property damage such as 36 destroyed cars and cracks in walls, roofs, water pipes and roads. In the quake-stricken region, many people living in high-rise apartments and commercial buildings had stayed in the streets, parks and other safe places for hours.

Four reactors have been shut down for safety checks in a nuclear power plant near the epicenter. The region around Gyeongju has a dozen reactors in South Korea's largest nuclear power complex in Gori and other complexes.

The Korea Nuclear Power Co. said nuclear power plants have been built to withstand an earthquake with a magnitude of up to 7.0.

For decades, South Korea, which has almost no reserves of fossil fuels on its territory, has pushed for a nuclear energy program. It now has 23 nuclear reactors in operation, which meet one-third of the country's power needs, and five more are under construction.

There have been growing public concerns over the safety of nuclear reactors following Japan's 2011 nuclear meltdown in Fukushima that drew unwelcome attention to the use of nuclear energy.

Hyundai Motor came to a temporary halt Tuesday for safety checks at its main plant in the southeastern industrial port of Ulsan, which is home to key industrial facilities such Hyundai Heavy Industries, the world's largest shipyard, and oil refining and petrochemical plants.

Major plants including SK Innovation and S-Oil in Ulsan have reported no serious damage.

Aju News Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
 
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