Moon cancels summer holiday as damage from heavy rain is mounting

SEOUL, Aug. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in has called off his scheduled summer holiday amid growing damage from torrential rain, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Monday.

He went down to his private home in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, over the weekend, with a plan to stay there for a week for a summer holiday, but he cut short his time off and has since come back to Seoul, the office said in a statement.

His decision came as torrential rain hammered the central part of the country, causing landslides and flooding that have destroyed buildings, killed and injured nearly 20 people and required some 1,500 to evacuate.

Last year, Moon also abruptly canceled his five-day summer vacation to respond, among other things, to Japan's trade restrictions against South Korea.

jaeyeon.woo@yna.co.kr
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