A fire broke out Monday morning at the YWCA building in Myeong-dong, central Seoul, prompting 181 people inside the building to evacuate. Fire authorities said they started putting out the blaze from the first basement level of the YWCA building, site of sports center construction, at 10:05 a.m. The fire was completely extinguished at 10:44 a.m., approximately an hour after dispatch received report of the fire.  Firefighters enter the YWCA building to check on remaining flames. (Yonhap)Twenty wo

Social Affairs Nov. 19, 2018

A KTX train entering Seoul Station broadsided an excavator that was engaged in track maintenance work, injuring three workers early Monday morning.KTX train No. 172, bound for Seoul from Busan, crashed into the excavator about 500 meters from Seoul Station at around 1:09 a.m., according to the fire authorities.KTX train No. 172, bound for Seoul from Busan, crashed into the excavator. (Yonhap)Three workers who were replacing railroad tracks sustained leg and head injuries. They were sent to a hos

Social Affairs Nov. 19, 2018

The third annual “French Cinema Tour 2018” kicked off Thursday, featuring eight French films that will be screened prior to their official opening here. Eight Movies: “Family is Family (La Ch‘tite famille),” “Taxi 5” “Diving(Plonger),” “Treat Me Like Fire(Joueurs),” “Non-fiction(Doubles Vies),” “A Paris Education,” “The Nation” and “Dilili in Paris” . (French Cinema Tour)The opening ceremony was held at Hotel Shilla in central Seoul, where the festival’s “Etoile du cinema” awards were given to F

Film Nov. 16, 2018

Eleven middle and high school students are being accused of raping an underage victim several times over the course of more than a year. An unidentified man in his 30s was also nabbed on accusations of sexually abusing the same victim.Gangwon Provincial Police Agency said Thursday that the four students were arrested and seven others were booked without detention on suspicion of raping a teenage girl for 14 months leading to July 2018. A man in his 30s who reportedly became acquainted with the v

Social Affairs Nov. 15, 2018

Four middle-school students were arrested Wednesday morning in connection with the death of a classmate who fell from a 15-story apartment building in Incheon on Tuesday. The Incheon Yeonsu Police Station said on Wednesday that the four boys had been arrested without warrants on suspicion of causing the fatal injury. The Incheon Yeonsu Police Station (Yonhap)The four students are accused of assaulting their classmate on the roof of the apartment building Tuesday at around 5:20 p.m., supposedly i

Social Affairs Nov. 14, 2018

Clear skies are expected across the nation Wednesday, the eve of Suneung. A wide range of temperatures are forecast, with heavy fogs expected in inland areas in the morning. The mercury plunged to zero to 11 degrees Celsius across the country early morning, but is set to rise to 12-17 C in the daytime, according to the Korean Meteorological Administration. (Yonhap)About 5-10 millimeters of light rain are expected in Yeongdong, Gangwon Province, and on the eastern coast of Gyeongsang Province. Li

Social Affairs Nov. 14, 2018

Mamamoo’s fan association declared a boycott of the group’s upcoming December concert, as well as merchandise purchases, Saturday, in a protest against recent moves made by the act’s RBW entertainment agency. The fan group vowed to take firm actions against the agency until it gives sincere feedback regarding the improvement of labor conditions for the girl group, requesting specific measures including delaying the “2018 4 seasons F/W” concert. Mamamoo’s “Moomoo” fandom Friday issued a statement

Performance Nov. 11, 2018

A Hangeul booth will be set up at The Language Show exhibition, Europe’s largest language event, which is being held from Friday to Sunday in London.Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said Thursday it would run a Hangeul exhibition booth together with the King Sejong Institute Foundation at Olympia West Hall in London. (The ministry of Culture Sports and Tourism)The Hangeul exhibition will promote Hangeul, Korean and Korean culture under the theme “Light up the Hangeul, Korean langu

Culture Nov. 8, 2018

A large number of products sold on online community sites, where groups of mothers often make pool together for purchases, were found to be illegally sold pharmaceuticals or cosmetics advertising false claims.　 (Yonhap)The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said its inspection of 100 products found 57 to be illegally distributed pharmaceutical products or products making false or exaggerated claims. The ministry focused on 23 online sites selling and advertising child-related products with the lar

Social Affairs Nov. 7, 2018

Licenses to sell Lotto lottery tickets will be withdrawn from three major convenience store corporations as early as next year, said the government on Tuesday.The Ministry of Economy and Finance said it will revoke the sales rights for Lotto -- the most popular offline lottery here -- from three convenience store corporations -- GS25, CU and Cspace. It is unclear when the measures will be implemented, but recent reports said that ministry officials are considering a grace period for the companie

Social Affairs Nov. 6, 2018

Murky air is expected Monday with “bad” levels of fine dust in the west of the country, including Seoul, and a wide range of temperature fluctuations in inland regions. According to the Air Quality Forecasting Center of the National Institute of Environmental Research, Seoul and the Gyeonggi, North and South Chungcheong and North and South Jeolla provinces will record “bad” levels of fine dust density throughout the day. (Yonhap)Density of fine dust is forecast in other regions to be “average,”

Social Affairs Nov. 5, 2018

Overcast skies are expected in South Korea on Monday, with thunderstorms in some parts of the country. Hail is forecast for some areas in the nation’s central region. About 5 to 20 millimeters of rain will fall on the Gyeongsang provinces, and scattered showers will produce less than 5 mm of rainfall in the southern parts of Gyeonggi Province as well as the Chungcheong and Jeolla regions.  (Yonhap)According to the Korean Meteorological Administration, morning temperatures across the country reco

Social Affairs Oct. 29, 2018

Around 7:50 p.m. on Oct. 19, clusters of people in sportswear gathered in front of Samseong Station, Exit No. 1. After putting their belongings in the crew’s vehicles, the runners headed to Coex Square together to do some warm-up exercises at 8 p.m. The Korea Herald ran with 98 runners from Samseong Station to Seocho Station, taking part in the “Run&Walk” program designed for beginners. It was an exhilarating experience to run in a city with so many people. There are a number of running crews in

Social Affairs Oct. 25, 2018

Weather in South Korea is expected to be generally fair nationwide due to high atmospheric pressure along the west coast, but early-morning temperatures will be in the single digits for the most part.According to the Korean Meteorological Administration, morning temperatures should be 1-12 degrees Celsius across the country, but are set to rebound to 19-22 C, with a wide temperature range between day and night.  (Yonhap)Daytime temperatures in Seoul will reach 21 C, Incheon 19 C, Gangneung 20 C,

Social Affairs Oct. 21, 2018

South Korea’s weather on Hangeul Proclamation Day will be chilly, with overcast skies expected nationwide throughout Tuesday, but should still not be too bad for outdoor events.Temperatures plunged to 6-15 degrees Celsius across the country in the morning, but are set to rebound to 19-22 C, according to the Korean Meteorological Administration. (Yonhap)Daytime temperatures in Seoul will reach 20 C, Incheon 20 C, Suwon 20 C, Gangneung 21 C, Daejeon 21 C, Gwangju 22 C and Busan 22 C.Northern parts

Social Affairs Oct. 9, 2018