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Photo from North leader's flood control visit suggests shoddy embankment construction

Published: 07 Aug. 2025, 11:46

This photo, published by the Korean Central News Agency on Aug. 2, shows a crack in the newly built embankment on which North Korean leader Kim Jong-un stands during his visit to flood prevention construction sites in Sinuiju and Uiju, both in North Pyongan Province. [YONHAP]

A photo of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's recent inspection of a flood prevention construction site has shown a crack in a newly built embankment, suggesting shoddy construction.

The state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Saturday on Kim's visit to embankment construction sites in Sinuiju and Uiju, both located in the northwestern North Pyongan Province, as part of flood prevention efforts. The region suffered severe flooding last year, displacing many residents.

Kim expressed satisfaction, saying, "The floods that residents here regarded as their destiny have become a thing of the past," the KCNA reported, releasing photos of him standing atop an embankment and listening to an official with a smiling face.

A photo of them, however, showed a clearly visible crack in the embankment, with misaligned building blocks exposed, suggesting shoddy construction, potentially due to hasty work.

Ryu Yong-uk, a civil engineering professor at Chonnam University, suspected the flaw may have resulted from a lack of meticulous calculation or rushed construction, warning the spot could be dangerous if left unrepaired.

Including a regional development project aimed at building modern factories in 20 cities and counties each year for a decade and a separate ongoing plan to construct new towns in Pyongyang, North Korea, is currently rushing construction across the country, raising concerns about potentially shoddy work.

Yonhap