Efforts were underway in South Korea, to evacuate close to 40,000 of the original 70,000 young members of the Scouts movement from around the world, from the path of a typhoon.
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The World Scout Jamboree, which hosted delegations from 158 countries, including Israel, was scheduled to take place in Saemangeum, a beautiful stretch of the country's south-west coast, but authorities decided that the threat posed by Tropical Storm Khanun, which was expected to land there on Thursday, was too great and began the mammoth task of moving the visiting delegations to safety.
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Buses are parked at the World Scout Jamboree campsite in Saemangeun
(Photo: Lee Hyun-Woo/ EPA )
Delegations will be taken to shelters, hotels, conference centers and American military bases around South Korea, according to Kim Sung-Ho, vice minister for Disaster and Safety. The Israeli delegation, numbering 58 participants and representing Scouts from diverse sectors of society, will remain in Seoul until they can board flights home, the Israel Scouts Federation said.
"We are in touch and are updating the families of our delegation members," Federation Chairman Eran Glazer said. "We are also working with the Israeli Embassy in Seoul to ensure everyone's safety."
South Korea had been dealing with extreme weather during the summer and, in addition to the dangers of the pending typhoon, many of the participants in the international gathering said conditions in the campsite were bad.
Hundreds of American Scouts already were transferred to Seoul, 70 kilometers (43 miles) away. British and Norwegians also left the area after complaining about the conditions. The South Korean government came under criticism for choosing a site that provided very little shade.
Typhoon Khanun began moving on its unexpected path around the islands south west of Japan, bringing rain that caused power outages and disrupted flights.