At least seven people, including one police officer and a public servant, went missing after boats capsized near a dam that was discharging water due to a risk of flooding, authorities said Thursday. They are believed to have been swept down through one of the dam’s open gates.

The incident occurred at around 11:30 a.m. on Uiam Lake in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, near the Uiam Dam. A total of eight people were aboard three boats and only one was rescued.

According to Chuncheon police and fire department office, the accident happened when a police patrol boat got caught in a wire near the dam and the two other boats were trying to salvage it.

Five of the missing people are dam maintenance workers.

(khnews@heraldcorp.com)