Through the Lens: South Korea battles massive wildfires and more

“We are fighting the worst wildfires in history”

A wildfire spreads across Andong, South Korea, on March 25. Strong winds drove wildfires in the country’s southeast, fueling what South Korea’s acting president called the most damaging blazes in its history. At least 28 people, including firefighters, have died in the fires and 37,200 people were evacuated from their homes. (Photo by Hwawon Lee/Anadolu/Getty Images)

Smoke and flames rise from a wildfire in Andong on March 25. (Photo by Yonhap/Reuters)

Wildfires spread to other cities near Andong on March 25. (Photo by Hwawon Lee/Anadolu/Getty Images)

Kun Yeong-nam, 72, walks near the charred remains of the house where she lived for 52 years, after a wildfire hit Uiseong, South Korea on March 27. (Photo by Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters)

Evacuees rest at a shelter, having fled wildfires in Yeongyang, South Korea, on March 26. (Photo by Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters)

A view of a burned-out factory in Andong, South Korea, on March 27, 2025, after it is engulfed by a wildfire the previous day. (Photo by Seung-il Ryu/Getty Images)

Firefighters spread water to block the fire in UNESCO heritage Andong Hahoe Folk Village as wildfire spreads across the city due to strong winds in Andong, South Korea on March 27. (Photo by Hwawon Lee/Getty Images)

Officials wrap a Buddha statue with a fire-retardant blanket at Gounsa temple in Uiseong, South Korea, on March 25. (Photo by Minwoo Park/Reuters)

Kim Min-seog and his wife bow in front of burnt graves of his family in the aftermath of a wildfire, in Yeongyang, South Korea, on March 28. (Photo by Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters)

30 years since deadly sarin gas attack on Tokyo subway

Kazuo Asakawa and his family pray to the victims of the sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway system 30 years ago, at Kasumigaseki Station, Tokyo, on March 20. The attack was perpetrated by the Aum Shinrikyo cult, killing 14 people and injuring over 6,000. (Photo by Kyodo)

The Tokyo Fire Department’s Chemical Task Force is dispatched following the sarin gas attack on March 20, 1995. (Photo by Masayuki Kozono)

Passengers on the platform at Tokyo’s Kamiyacho Station on March 20, 1995. (Photo by Yukinobu Kurosaka)

Ambulance workers tend to people injured in the attack at Kamiyacho Station on March 20, 1995. (Photo by Yukinobu Kurosaka)

Aum Shinrikyo cult leader Chizuo Matsumoto is transferred to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department in Tokyo on Sept. 25, 1995. (Photo by Kyodo)

Palau, a small Pacific island at the mercy of the U.S. and China

The Palau Pacific Resort in Koror. In 2023, China once again became the island country’s biggest source of tourism revenue. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)

Children play with a ball in the back of a truck in Koror, Palau. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)

A Japanese tank gun left over from the 1944 Battle of Peleliu is seen in a jungle on Palau’s Peleliu Island. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)

The 46th Bangkok International Motor Show

The 46th Bangkok International Motor Show opened to the general public on March 26 and runs through April 6. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)

A Thai family walks by Toyota’s hybrid Collora Cross on March 24 at the Bangkok International Motor Show. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)

‘Just like in China’ -- Chinatowns proliferate across Japan

The area northwest of Tokyo’s Ikebukuro Station has over the years seen a significant rise in the number of residents from China, with many saying the neighborhood has an atmosphere similar to parts of China. By 2026, the number of Chinese residents in Japan is expected to exceed 1 million. (Photo by Sae Kamae)

“About 80% of our customers are Chinese,” said the owner of a shop that sells pre-made Chinese food in Chiba, just east of Tokyo. (Photo by Toru Tsunashima)