North Korea leader Kim Jon-un says Typhoon Bavi caused 'little damage'
Follow UsStory highlights
Kim, who visited South Hwanghae province southwest of Pyongyang, had issued an alert to prevent crop damage and casualties from the typhoon, which made landfall near the capital, dumping heavy rains and uprooting trees.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Typhoon Bavi had caused only minimal damage to the country after making landfall early on Thursday, state news media KCNA reported on Friday.
Kim, who visited South Hwanghae province southwest of Pyongyang, had issued an alert to prevent crop damage and casualties from the typhoon, which made landfall near the capital, dumping heavy rains and uprooting trees.
North Korea, which has also been stepping up efforts to combat the novel coronavirus, had referred to Typhoon Bavi as the No. 8 storm.
"He said that the scale of damage from Typhoon number 8 is smaller than expected, adding that he had worried a lot and he feels it is fortunate to have that amount of damage," said KCNA, referring to Kim's remarks.
Kim's visit came after the KCTV state television showed scenes of damage from the storm. Heavy rains earlier this month that caused flooding and damaged crops have raised concerns about food supplies in the isolated country.
Kim praised party officials for taking measures to reduce casualties and minimize damage from the storm. The state news agency did not give further details on the scale of the damage.
South Korea reported no casualties from the storm, while some public facilities were damaged and some experienced power outage.
Natural disasters tend to have a greater impact in the North than in the South due to its creaking infrastructure.
The North is also vulnerable to flooding as many mountains and hills have long been deforested, allowing water to flow downhill unchecked.
International aid workers in the country are currently unable to travel outside Pyongyang due to restrictions authorities have imposed to guard against the coronavirus outbreak.
The North has yet to confirm a single case of the disease.
Three of the four officials accompanying Kim wore facemasks, while he did not, the Rodong Sinmun pictures showed.