South Korea on Wednesday offered aid worth 5 billion won to North Korea, its first offer in nine months. Seoul's unification ministry said the offer of medicine and daily necessities was made after dozens were killed when a storm and torrential rain lashed the country. It said if the North accepted the aid offered through the South's Red Cross, talks would be held on shipping arrangements. Official media in North Korea has said a tropical storm and heavy rain in June and July left dozens of people dead, injured or missing, destroyed 2,900 homes and flooded more than 60,000 hectares of farmland.