South Korea wildfires ‘largest on record’: disaster chief

Wildfires in South Korea are now the largest and deadliest on record, having burned more forest and killed more people than any previous blaze, officials said on Thursday, as the death toll hit 27.

More than a dozen fires broke out over the weekend, scorching wide swathes of the southeast and forcing around 37,000 people to flee, with the fire cutting off roads and downing communications lines as residents escaped in panic.

South Korea’s Ministry of Interior and Safety said that...