Hangang Bridge demolition
한강 인도교 폭파
In the early hours of 28 June 1950, the Republic of Korea Army prematurely demolished the Hangang Bridge in Seoul to slow the North Korean advance, detonating explosives while refugees and retreating troops were still crossing and without issuing an evacuation order. Between 500 and 800 people were killed and major ROK units, including the Fifth Division, were cut off north of the river, hastening the fall of Seoul that same morning. Colonel Choi Chang-sik, the engineer who carried out the demolition, was executed by firing squad in September 1950 and posthumously acquitted in 1964.
In depth
Background
By the third day of the war, 27 June 1950, the Korean People's Army had pushed to the outskirts of Seoul with its tank spearheads. When the Miari defensive line collapsed on the evening of the 27th, ROK Army Chief of Staff Major General Chae Byeong-deok decided to abandon the capital and ordered the Hangang Bridge demolished. Engineers had already placed 1,600 kg of TNT on the structure earlier that day. President Syngman Rhee had evacuated Seoul by special train on the morning of the 27th while broadcasting to citizens that the capital would be defended.
The Demolition and Casualties
At 2:30 a.m. on 28 June, under the command of Colonel Choi Chang-sik, the Hangang Bridge and three railway bridges were blown. Refugees, retreating soldiers, and vehicles were still crossing; no proper evacuation order or access blockade had been carried out. Three American war correspondents witnessed the blast from only 25 yards away: Burton Crane of The New York Times, Frank Gibney of Time, and Keyes Beech of the Chicago Daily News. Estimates place the death toll between 500 and 800, though the only officially confirmed victims remain 77 policemen from Seoul's Jongno Police Station.
Military Consequences
Despite the demolition, one railway bridge was not completely destroyed, allowing the KPA to lay crossing planks and send T-34 tanks into the Yeongdeungpo area. Major ROK units north of the river, including the Fifth Division, lost their retreat path and disintegrated or were captured. The KPA occupied Seoul by 11:30 a.m. that same day, less than nine hours after the blast. Choi Chang-sik was court-martialed, sentenced to death, and executed by firing squad on 21 September 1950. After a retrial, he was posthumously acquitted in 1964.
Historical Assessment
The Hangang Bridge demolition stands as a symbol of the confusion and command failure that marked the ROK military's early response to the invasion. Responsibility for the demolition order is disputed among Chae Byeong-deok, deputy chief of staff Kim Baek-il, Vice Minister of Defence Jang Gyeong-geun, Prime Minister Yi Beom-seok, and others, with some accounts implicating a US adviser. The demolition inflicted catastrophic losses in men and materiel and cut off the army's own retreat route, a decision that remains one of the most controversial in modern Korean military history.
Sources
- Wikipedia (EN) English Wikipedia: date (28 June 1950, 2:30 a.m.), 1,600 kg TNT, 200–800 casualties, 77 Jongno police confirmed dead, Fifth Division trapped, Col. Choi Chang-sik executed and posthumously acquitted, three American war correspondents at the scene
- Wikipedia (KO) Korean Wikipedia: background on Miari defense line collapse, Chae Byeong-deok decision, chain of command dispute, Choi retrial and acquittal timeline, incomplete railway bridge destruction enabling KPA tank crossing
- encykorea.aks.ac.kr Encyclopedia of Korean Culture (한국민족문화대백과사전): authoritative Korean reference confirming 28 June 2:30 a.m. detonation, three railway bridges + one pedestrian bridge, Chae Byeong-deok and Choi Chang-sik roles, civilian/military casualties, Choi executed September 1950, retried 1962 and acquitted 1964
- darksideofseoul.com Detailed narrative: Rhee's secret evacuation and misleading public broadcast, lack of civilian evacuation order, eyewitness accounts of the blast, hundreds killed while crossing, Fifth Division trapped north of the river