Disaster agencies on red alert as South Korea to retry deferred rocket launch
-A A +ATuesday, January 29, 2013
MANILA -- Local disaster offices have gone into red alert starting on Tuesday as South Korea is scheduled to reattempt the launch of its first space rocket, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said Tuesday.
A letter from the Office of Asian and Pacific Affairs of the Department of Foreign Affairs states that the lift-off of the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1 (KSLV-1) is set between January 30 and February 8 at the Naro Space Center in Goheung, Jeollanam-do.
"In view of the above, all concerned agencies will activate their respective disaster operation centers under Red Alert status from 29 January 2013 until further notice," the NDRRMC said.
A no sail, fly, fishing zone policy will be effective on affected areas during the scheduled launch dates.
The NDRRMC has projected that rocket debris may fall into waters east of the Philippines while the "danger period" during the launch day is between 3 to 7 p.m. Manila time.
The launch of the KSLV-1 was originally set on October 2012 but was postponed for at least two times due to technical problems.
On the other hand, the country's communist neighbor, North Korea, was able to launch a rocket into space on December 2012. Debris fell into waters east of the Philippines. (Emmanuel Louis Bacani/Sunnex)
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