Ph Embassy in Seoul relocates consular services due to floods

August 11 ------ The Philippine Embassy in Seoul has announced the temporary relocation of its consular services following the heavy rains that caused severe flooding in South Korea.

In an advisory, the Embassy said the services will be rendered in the following locations:

• Passport processing and encoding — 3F Philippine Overseas Labor Office

• Visa — 3F Philippine Overseas Labor Office

• Notarial and civil registry — Room 101, Philippine Embassy

• Assistance to Nationals — Room 101, Philippine Embassy

The Embassy said temporary relocation of services took effect starting August 10 to 11 in order “to check the effect of the high volume of rain on the embassy.” It added that consular telephone lines will also be not available during this period.

However, consular applicants may contact them through the following email addresses:

• Visa — visa@philembassy-seoul.com

• Passport — passport@philembassy-seoul.com

• Notarial — notarials@philembassy-seoul.com

• Civil registry — civilregistries@philembassy-seoul.com

• Assistance to nationals — atn@philembassy-seoul.com

Meanwhile, the Embassy also advised members of the Filipino communities in Seoul to monitor weather conditions and observe safety precautions. “In view of the extremely heavy rains this week, the Philippine Embassy advises members of the Filipino Community to continue to closely monitor weather conditions in their respective areas and to observe safety precautions,” it said in a separate advisory. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) earlier said there were no Filipino casualties reported after record-breaking rains caused severe flooding in South Korea. The department said the embassy was also coordinating with Filipino communities in the affected areas.

Dramatic images in South Korea shared on social media showed people wading through waist-deep water, metro stations overflowing, and cars half-submerged in Seoul's posh Gangnam district, which was particularly hard-hit when torrential rains battered the city.

Source: gmanetwork.com