Angong( South Korea): Wildfires in South Korea are now "the largest on record" having burned more forest than any previous blazes, the country's disaster chief said Thursday, as the death toll rose to 26.

"The wildfire is spreading rapidly," said Lee Han-kyung, disaster and safety division chief. "The forest damage has reached 35,810 hectares, already exceeding the area affected by the 2000 East Coast wildfire, previously the largest on record, by more than 10,000 hectares."

"This wildfire has once again exposed the harsh reality of a climate crisis unlike anything we've experienced before," said Lee Han-kyung, disaster and safety division chief, adding that the affected areas had seen only half the average rainfall this season.