The deadly floods that swept through South Korea on August 8 and 9 have shed light on the dangers of living in "banjiha", semi-underground basement dwellings common in Seoul. Four people died in their banjiha after being trapped by the rising waters. Our Observer, who like more than 200,000 families in Seoul lives in a banjiha, told us about the experience.
Street-level windows that barely let in daylight, high levels of humidity and mould, and virtually no cellular service: these are the defining characteristics of banjiha – literally meaning "half-buried" in Korean.
