South Korean President Moon Jae-in speaks during a ceremony of the 103rd anniversary of the March 1st Independence Movement Day in Seoul, South Korea, March 1, 2022. Jeon Heon-Kyun/Pool via
South Korean President Moon Jae-in speaks during a ceremony of the 103rd anniversary of the March 1st Independence Movement Day in Seoul, South Korea, March 1, 2022. Jeon Heon-Kyun/Pool via Reuters / POOL

South Korea President Moon Jae-in on Friday ordered an all-out efforts to be made to protect the Hanul Nuclear Power Plant from a wildfire that broke out in the eastern coastal county of Uljin, the presidential office said in a statement.

The government issued a natural disaster alert after a wildfire broke out in the county of Uljin on Friday, where the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. operates six nuclear pressurised water reactors.

Output for one of the six reactors was reduced on Friday afternoon due to unstable weather conditions, its website showed.

Of the total, five reactors are currently in operation while one was under maintenance.

The authorities have not said how far the fires are from the site of the plant.

The country's prime minister Kim Boo-kyum in a separate statement said local firefighters will cooperate with the defence ministry and the forestry agency to put out wildfires that are reportedly moving upwards along the country's east coast towards Gangwon province.

As of late Friday the fires have destroyed a total of 12 residential properties and three storage units, according to Yonhap.