Consumer, Science, Policy & regulation, Health, Disasters & accidents
499 storiesOne worker injured in rock collapse at Vostochny mine in Russia's Primorye
A rock collapse at the Vostochny mine in Primorsky Krai injured one worker, with no fatalities reported. Twenty-two people were in the shaft at the time; rescuers brought the injured miner to the surface and handed him to ambulance crews. P…
WHO and Russia say no further plague infections after Siberian lab worker's death
A female worker at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East died last week from pneumonia of undetermined origin, according to Russian authorities and the WHO. Russia's Rospotrebnadzor said 60% of the identified contact…
Korean doctors and parties seek rules after police search of pediatric ER
Police searched the pediatric emergency medical center at Ajou University Hospital on September 30 as part of an investigation into the July death of a five-month-old infant. The National Council of Medical School Professors and other medic…
Nuri rocket erected on launch pad ahead of fifth flight on Oct 7
South Korea's Nuri rocket moved from its assembly building to the second launch pad at the Naro Space Center in Goheung on the morning of Oct 6 and was erected and fixed in place at 10:35, according to the Korea AeroSpace Administration and…
Defense ministry to pursue cut, abolition of alternative service for arts, sports
South Korea’s Defense Ministry said on Oct 6 that it plans to ultimately pursue a reduction and abolition of supplementary military service, including arts and sports personnel, and to reflect it in the defense reform basic plan. Spokespers…
Asian Games gold row widens as parties in South Korea seek exemption review
South Korea beat Japan 1-0 on October 3 to win a fourth consecutive Asian Games men's football gold, a result that exempts most of the squad from military service. A locker-room photo of Park Seung-su in a discharge hat, captain Lee Ki-hyuk…
Nobel physics prize goes to IceCube neutrino researcher Francis Halzen
Sweden's Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said on 6 October that the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics goes to Francis Halzen of the University of Wisconsin-Madison for decisive contributions to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the discovery…
South Korea's Lee orders CPTPP talks restarted from the beginning amid farm concerns
President Lee Jae-myung instructed at a cabinet meeting on Oct 6 that the government should not fix a conclusion on joining the CPTPP and should “restart dialogue from the beginning,” saying the pact's strategic value is cited alongside ver…
Netherlands proposes civilian reserve of 150,000 for emergencies
The Netherlands has proposed creating a civilian reserve for crises, with RTL reporting a target of 150,000 reservists for emergency situations, according to TASS. The reported roles include drivers, security guards and mechanics. RBC repor…
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine Awarded to Three Optogenetics Pioneers
Sweden's Karolinska Institutet said on Oct 5 local time that the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine went to Karl Deisseroth of Stanford University, Peter Hegemann of Humboldt University Berlin and Georg Nagel of the University of Wü…
Single Seoul apartment unit draws 68,663 applicants on near-1-billion-won gap
One 84㎡ unit at the 강변역 센트럴 아이파크 complex in Guui-dong, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul drew 68,663 applications when it was offered on Oct 6, Newsis and Seoul Economic Daily reported, both citing the Korea Real Estate Board's Cheongyak Home portal. The …
Russian anti-plague lab researcher dies; US and EU say they are monitoring
A 28-year-old female researcher at the Irkutsk anti-plague research institute in Shelekhov, Russia, died after being diagnosed with pneumonia of unknown cause, the state agency Rospotrebnadzor said. About 200 people who may have had contact…
Trump signs order allowing tax-free red-dyed diesel on highways
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday temporarily allowing off-road red-dyed diesel to be used for highway driving and deferring the federal excise tax on that fuel through the end of 2026 without interest or penalties.…
Ulsan Ulju Hospital warns of rise in autumn centipede bites
Ulsan Ulju Hospital said on Oct 6 that it has been seeing a series of patients bitten by centipedes as autumn sets in, and urged the public to take precautions. The hospital described recent cases, including a person in their 50s bitten on …
Russia quarantines hospital as lab worker’s death puts nearly 200 under observation
A female employee of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East died last week of pneumonia of unknown cause, Russian authorities said, and a hospital in the town of Shelekhov was placed under quarantine. Officia…
Typhoon No. 27 moves north near Ogasawara as typhoons 28 and 29 form
Typhoon No. 27, described by the Japan Meteorological Agency as large and very strong, moved north over waters near the Ogasawara Islands and was forecast to approach the islands at very strong intensity from the evening of Oct. 5 to early …
WHO keeps low-risk view on Russian plague lab death; Russia denies accident
The World Health Organization said the public health risk to the general public appears low after a researcher at a plague research institute in Russia's Irkutsk region died following what reports described as a broken test tube of plague p…
Fishing boat capsizes off Jeju; nine rescued, two missing as search continues
A 29-tonne fishing vessel registered in Sacheon capsized at about 03:04 on October 5 about 65 kilometres northwest of Chagwido, off Jeju, with 11 people aboard. Nine crew — eight Indonesians and one Vietnamese — were rescued and taken to Ha…
Three typhoons active near Japan as Typhoon 27 moves north, JMA says
The Japan Meteorological Agency announced on Oct. 5 that Typhoon 28 (Nolo) and Typhoon 29 (Koguma) had formed, making three active typhoons near Japan with Typhoon 27 (Choi-wan). Typhoon 27 was large and very strong, moving north-northwest …
President Lee vows to keep pledge to end “real estate speculation republic”
President Lee Jae-myung said on Oct. 5 in a post on X that his government will keep its promise to escape the “real estate speculation republic,” saying the country cannot be made to face a “lost 30 years” from real-estate bomb-passing even…