Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said on Friday that the government will move swiftly to designate areas hit hard by this week's heavy rains as a special disaster zone.

The prime minister made the remarks while presiding over a government meeting to check responses to the recent downpours and the COVID-19 situation.

Han said the government will make the utmost effort to stabilize the lives of residents in the affected areas and provide support for a swift recovery.

The prime minister then asked local governments in such areas to quickly conduct an assessment of damage from the heavy rains.

He also instructed the interior ministry to swiftly take steps to apply the special zone designation for areas that satisfy the related criteria.

The designation will enable the affected regions to tap into state funds to cover a significant portion of the costs of recovery work.