North Korea’s flood aid has concentrated on Sinuiju and Uiju County following Kim Jong Un’s visit, despite widespread damage across multiple provinces.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a source in South Pyongan Province told Daily NK recently that large amounts of relief supplies for the flood victims — including rice, corn, medicine and blankets — are reaching the Sinuiju and Uiju area.
“Relief supplies are being collected around the country to be sent to the flood-stricken areas, and food, clothing and medicine are piling up in Sinuiju and Uiju following a visit by Marshal (Kim Jong Un),” the source said. “Sinuiju and Uiju are receiving high-quality supplies from factories, companies and powerful organizations, including department stores in Pyongyang.”
Rodong Sinmun reported on Aug. 1 that “following reports that General Secretary Comrade (Kim) visited the site of flood damage in Sinuiju and Uiju County in North Pyongan Province, the disaster areas are continuing to receive aid supplies generously donated by families and workplaces not only in the capital of Pyongyang but in areas around the country.” The newspaper also ran a photograph showing a convoy of trucks carrying relief supplies.
But even as relief supplies poured into the parts of North Pyongan Province personally visited by Kim, the source said, farming villages and rugged upland areas that were also hit hard by the flooding have not received any aid, nor have any military units been deployed to help them rebuild.
People in rural areas face severe challenges without aid
According to the source, a resident of the coal mining complex in Kaechon, South Pyongan Province, is still unable to enter his home, which was inundated on July 27, and is dealing with a serious shortage of everything, including food and clothing.
Residents of the mining complex who barely escaped with their lives when their houses were inundated in the rising waters are infuriated by news that aid efforts are underway in Pyongyang and other major cities, the source said.
“Floodwaters rushing violently down a mountain gorge are more frightening than river water spreading over wide fields. I’m sure the people in Sinuiju and Uiju have suffered a lot, but many families in highland villages were nearly buried in landslides.