Mount Inwang in Seoul, a popular hiking spot, reported a massive wildfire on Sunday.

According to fire-prevention authorities, the fire broke out on a northeastern ridge near Zaha Museum at 11:53 a.m., prompting the issuance of the second-highest response system involving over 120 firefighting apparatuses and 42-hundred personnel.

The response was downgraded to the first stage as the main blaze was subdued at around 5 p.m. but officials struggled for hours to extinguish the remaining fire following the sunset. As of 6:50 a.m. on Monday, 98 percent of the fire had extinguished. 

The blaze at one point spread to the top of the mountain, sending smoke as far as Gaemi Village in Hongje-dong, Seodaemun District, forcing around 120 households to flee for makeshift shelters before they were eventually allowed to return home.

Around 15 hectares of wildland, equivalent to 21 football pitches, were estimated to have been damaged due to the wildfire.