Two months have passed since North Korea suffered flood damage, and while flood recovery work is still in full swing, this newspaper obtained photos showing construction sites in flood-damaged areas. It has been confirmed that the flood damage recovery site is in a very poor condition, with residents mobilized for construction carrying dirt without equipment.
A photo obtained by Daily NK shows about a dozen male and female residents carrying mud with their bare hands. Residents are carrying mud in buckets, most of them without shoes.
Additionally, the men are wearing shorts and sleeveless underwear and are not equipped with work clothes or even basic safety equipment.
The photo was taken at the flood recovery site in Sinuiju, North Pyongan Province, early this month, and although it had been more than a month since the flood occurred, it was reported that basic work to consolidate the dirt floor was still being done.
According to sources, foundation construction for a building was in progress here, and workers were moving dirt and stones to level the dirt floor.
There is a severe shortage of gloves, shovels, buckets, and gunny bags needed for work, so residents are scooping up dirt with their bare hands.
Another photo obtained by this paper shows two pieces of heavy equipment and shock troopers watching them.
These heavy machines are used to smooth out and level the uneven soil. One machine appears to be plowing the soil and the other is using rollers to level the floor.
It is understood that the construction workers, estimated to number around 100, are standing next to the heavy equipment and watching to level the floor, such as picking out stones after the heavy equipment has passed.
However, only two machines were mobilized for the work, but it appears that a large number of construction workers, as many as 100, are being deployed to the flood damage recovery site.
Judging by the fact that some of them were wearing hard hats, it is presumed that they were construction-specialized shock troopers. However, it was confirmed that the flood recovery site was in such a poor environment that even the storm troopers were not properly equipped with safety equipment.
A source said, “Flood damage recovery workshops are crowded with people, but there is a severe shortage of guaranteed equipment and materials,” and “Constructors are in great pain due to the lack of even water.”
In addition, construction workers are said to be toileting anywhere due to a lack of toilets, and wearing sweaty clothes without washing them, causing a foul odor everywhere in the restoration site.
In fact, photos showing the barracks where female shock troopers live and eat clearly capture the poor conditions on site.
The barracks are built on wooden beams erected neatly and have a ceiling covered with a plastic film. The ceiling is so low that the interior height is less than 1.5m, and the floor is a thin mat spread on a dirt floor.
Blankets, bags, hats, and other luggage are piled up in a mess in the narrow barracks, so it appears that there will be no space for construction workers to stretch their legs and rest after completing hard work.
The photo shows a female construction worker lying down and resting, but she is bent over because she cannot extend her legs.
Fortunately, the plastic curtain covering the barracks is transparent on both sides, allowing the hot sun to shine down on them. The barracks do not even provide shade.
“These photos were taken before Chuseok, and the weather was very hot when the photos were taken,” the source said. “People who had been struggling with the dirt all day had to lie down in the barracks soaked in sweat without being able to wash properly.”
He said, “It’s hard to bear the heat, hunger, and hardship, but the swarms of mosquitoes are so extreme that it feels like a living hell. I don’t know how long I’ll have to live like this.”
Source: www.dailynk.com
