김정은 "내 몫 예비양곡•물자 풀어 수재민 지원" 북한도 장마 피해

It's not just South Korea reeling from rain damage.
North Korean leader apparently made a rare visit to a flood-stricken site to inspect recovery work at a northeastern city.
The North's state media reports Kim Jong-un ordered shelters to be arranged for displaced people and residents to be supplied with food grain from his own reserves.
Kim Ji-yeon reports.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected a flood-damaged village in Hwanghaebuk-do Province and ordered relief supplies for the victims.
State-run Korean Central News Agency reported Friday... that Kim Jong-un had ordered officials to send his personal stock of grain and facilitate the use of supplies and materials needed to rebuild damaged areas.
It reported...the village had more damage compared to other locations as the embankment had burst... with nearly nine-hundred homes and six-million square-meters of rice fields destroyed or inundated with water.
The report also said that Kim has mobilized the army and ordered urgent deployment to wrecked houses, roads and zones.
No casualties have been reported as residents were able to evacuate to shelters.
This is Kim's second visit to a flooded area since his ascension to power in 2011... the last being five years ago.
Media outlets in South Korea described the visit as "rare" since the last time Kim made such a visit was during the restoration process... 20 days after the damage was inflicted.
Pundits believe the move is seen as part of Kim's efforts to consolidate power... intended to alleviate grievances from the public... who are already suffering from the coronavirus outbreak, the recent heavy rainfall... as well as economic difficulties worsened by the pandemic.
In response to the North's report, Seoul's unification ministry stated it is closely monitoring the situation... and reiterated its stance that humanitarian support should be carried out in the case of natural disasters.
Earlier this week, the unification ministry stated that the government has decided to provide ten-million U.S. dollars worth of funding for a World Food Programme project to supply food and nutrition to young children and women in North Korea.
Kim Ji-yeon, Arirang News.