Scouts jamboree disaster continues as TYPHOON forces South Korean event to be scrapped
- 4,500 British scouts were forced into hotels amid sweltering temperatures
- Now, the campsite for 40,000 scouts is in the path of Tropical Storm Khanun
South Korea is preparing to evacuate tens of thousands of scouts from a coastal jamboree as a tropical storm bears down on the event, officials said today.
The jamboree has already been marred by hot temperatures which forced many – including 4,500 British scouts – off the site and into hotels at the cost of £1 million.
Hundreds of participants had been treated for heat-related ailments since the jamboree started on Wednesday.
Now, as Tropical Storm Khanun looms, the World Organization of the Scout Movement said it received confirmation from South Korea’s government of the early departure for all participants in the southwestern county of Buan.
That means quickly moving tens of thousands of scouts – mostly teenagers – from 158 countries out of the storm’s path.
British scouts arrive at a hotel in Seoul on August 5, 2023, after leaving the World Scout Jamboree in Buan, North Jeolla province due to high temperatures
Tents are pitched at a scout camping site during the World Scout Jamboree in Buan, South Korea, on Aug. 4, 2023. The campsite is now in the path of an incoming storm
South Korea’s weather agency said the region where the jamboree has been will be affected by the storm as early as Wednesday.
The country categorises Khanun as a typhoon, defined as a tropical storm with winds stronger than 61 kilometers (38 miles) per hour.
READ MORE: Bear Grylls insists ‘It’s a Jamboree wherever Scouts are’ after UK, USA and Singapore delegations escape 100F heatwave hell
President Yoon Suk Yeol’s office said he called for ‘contingency’ plans, which could include relocating them to hotels and other facilities in the country’s capital, Seoul, and nearby metropolitan areas.
The site is made on land reclaimed from the sea, making it particularly vulnerable.
Long before the event’s start, critics raised concerns about bringing such large numbers of young people to a vast, treeless area lacking protection from the summer heat.
Organizers earlier on Monday were scurrying to come up with plans to evacuate the scouts ahead of the storm’s arrival.
No details have been given on where the participants will stay until they return home, but Choi Chang-haeng, secretary-general of the jamboree’s organizing committee, said organizers have secured more than 340 evacuation venues, including community centers and gyms, in regions near Buan.
About 40,000 scouts, mostly teenagers, from 158 countries came to the Jamboree at a campsite built on land reclaimed from the sea.
About 4,500 were from the U.K., representing the largest national contingent, while about 1,000 were from the United States.
MailOnline revealed over the weekend how volunteers have been left ‘incandescent at the lack of leadership’ amid the chaos at the jamboree.
Before news of the storm, the World Organisation of the Scout Movement on Saturday called for the event to be shelved in its entirety and asked South Korean organisers to ‘consider alternative options to end the event earlier than scheduled and support the participants until they depart for their home countries.’
But the South Korean government conducted spot inspections on Saturday and found conditions were no longer as dire as has been claimed, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said, adding that after discussions with participating countries, ‘we decided to continue the event without stopping.’
Former jamboree leaders and volunteers have blasted the UK contingent for censoring youngsters and leaders from exposing ‘the true scale of the mess’, while one parent said their child thought ‘they were going to die’ amid the blistering heat.
A volunteer, who wished to remain anonymous, told MailOnline: ‘I am absolutely incandescent with the lack of leadership at the very top.’ She added that the chaos was being masked by leaders – and several volunteers believe that ‘had the true position come to light earlier, the situation may have been much better’.
Scouts UK said it was ‘unaware’ of any form of censoring going on.
Temperatures hit 35C (95F) in Saemangeum, near the city of Buan on South Korea’s west coast, where 43,000 participants were camping as of Friday.
Flags are displayed at a viewing deck overlooking the campsite of the World Scout Jamboree in Buan, North Jeolla province on August 5, 2023
Other parts of South Korea have topped 38C (100.4F), forcing the government to issue the highest heat warning in four years.
Among those in attendance is adventurer Bear Grylls – the UK’s chief scout since 2009 – who was filmed dripping in sweat as he delivered a speech at the opening ceremony. He had urged people to remain calm before the UK pulled members out.
Saturday saw thousands of British children, aged 14 to 17, packing their bags at the campsite. The first wave of children arrived at hotels in Seoul – where they were met by Gareth Weir – the British Deputy Ambassador to South Korea.
British scouts continued to evacuate to hotels across the weekend.
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