Fire in dense Seoul neighborhood destroys at least 60 homes

By KIM TONG-HYUNG
Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A fire has destroyed at least 60 homes in a neighborhood of densely packed, makeshift housing surrounded by some of the wealthiest streets of South Korea’s ultra-modern capital. Firefighters extinguished the flames in Seoul’s Guryong village within about five hours. About 500 people had to flee, but officials said no injuries or deaths had been reported as of Friday afternoon. Guryong village, an illegal encampment located near some of Seoul’s most expensive real estate, has long been a symbol of South Korea’s stark income inequalities. It was formed in the 1980s to house people evicted during redevelopment projects under a then-military government.