South Korea grounded firefighting helicopters following a fatal crash on Wednesday as authorities struggle to contain “unprecedented” wildfires that have ravaged the country’s southeast, killing at least 19 people and destroying a centuries-old Buddhist temple.

The death toll in the wildfires raging across South Korea's southeastern region rose to 24 and the pilot of a firefighting helicopter was killed when the aircraft crashed on Wednesday, as the country battles some of its worst forest fires in decades.