Seoul: A power outage disrupted services on Seoul Subway Line 1 on Wednesday morning, the train operator KORAIL said, causing major delays and chaos for commuters during the morning rush hour.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the power outage occurred on the southbound section between Changdong Station and Sinimun Station in northern Seoul at 7:29 a.m., leading to train delays and service disruptions across the entire Line 1 route. The operator suspended southbound train services on a wider section between Dobongsan Station and Cheongnyangni Station for emergency repairs and restored power at 9:48 a.m.

KORAIL resumed services on the affected section at 9:57 a.m. and then carried out follow-up work to normalize train intervals on the remaining sections. As the train service disruptions continued for several hours, major stations were crowded with passengers waiting for delayed trains.

At Yongsan Station in central Seoul, in particular, passengers disembarked simultaneously as an announcement was made that trains would temporarily run only as far as the next station, Namyeong Station, resulting in heavy congestion on the platform, and at nearby bus and taxi stops.

A KORAIL official stated that the cause of the accident was still under investigation, adding that they were doing their best to normalize operations.