North Korean rocket launch sets off — wrongly — air raid sirens in Seoul

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SEOUL — The 25 million residents of Seoul were — loudly — jolted out of their indifference to the North Korean nuclear threat when air raid sirens blasted out across the South Korean capital around 6:32 a.m. local time Wednesday, warning of a North Korean missile launch.

It turned out to be a false alarm — North Korea had fired what it called a space-launch vehicle at around 6:29 a.m. local time from its west coast and over South Korea’s westernmost Baengnyeongdo Island, according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.

But the projectile landed in South Korea’s western waters after an “abnormal flight” and before it could launch any object into orbit, according to officials in Seoul and Tokyo.

The air raid sirens and the warning for citizens to prepare for potential evacuation turned out to be a “false alert,” the Ministry of Interior and Safety said.

Japan also issued an alert in on the southern island of Okinawa for residents to “take shelter inside a building or underground immediately” but the alert was lifted 30 minutes later.

North Korea’s National Aerospace Development Administration said an “accident” occurred during the launch of its military reconnaissance satellite and the second stage of the rocket malfunctioned. It lost thrust mid-air due to engine failure and fell into the sea between the Korean peninsula and China.

The North Korean military would conduct another launch “soon,” the official Korean Central News Agency in Pyongyang said on Wednesday morning.

North Korea had previously said that it planned to launch its first-ever military spy satellite May 31 and June 11, saying it was needed so it could track “dangerous” actions by the United States, including the recent joint drills taking place with the South Korean military.

Senior North Korean official Ri Pyong Chol said on Tuesday that the country’s first military reconnaissance satellite would provide “reliable reconnaissance information system” to “have a grip on enemy military activities in real time.”

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The North’s space launch is considered a breach of U.N. Security Council resolutions that restrict the regime from using ballistic missile technology, which can also be used for warheads.

After Pyongyang warned Japan of its plans to launch a space satellite, Tokyo on Monday condemned the plan as a cover for a potential missile launch and ordered its military to destroy any North Korean missile that entered its territory.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Monday North Korea’s planned launch would be a “serious issue that affects the people’s safety.” He has instructed relevant ministries to urge Pyongyang to “exercise self-restraint,” making the call in conjunction with the United States and South Korea.

Additional reporting from Julia Mio Inuma in Tokyo.

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