Heat wave, tropical nights to persist in South Korea this week 

SEOUL – Heat wave warnings and tropical night phenomena are expected to persist throughout this week, with sporadic rain continuing in the Greater Seoul area and some parts of Gangwon province until the end of the week, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) on July 29.

On July 30, daytime temperatures are expected to reach as high as 36 deg C, with precipitation ranging between 5mm and 30mm for parts of Gyeonggi and Gangwon provinces, and 5mm to 10mm for much of Greater Seoul and northern parts of North Chungcheong province.

The weather reports came as most parts of the country saw tropical nights on July 29.

According to the KMA, in Sokcho, Gangwon province, the lowest overnight temperature was 30.6 deg C, marking it the hottest night on record since August 2008.

The lowest temperature in Gangneung, another city in Gangwon province, reached 30.4 deg C.

A tropical night refers to a phenomenon where the lowest temperature remains above 25 deg C between 6.01pm the night before and 9am the next day. If temperatures stay above 30 deg C throughout the night, it is dubbed a “super tropical night”.

The KMA added that other major cities were also hit with tropical nights, including Seoul, Incheon and Daegu where temperatures reached as high as 27.2 deg C, 26.6 deg C and 26.3 deg C, respectively.

“A tropical night phenomenon was observed in most parts of the country overnight as the warm, humid southerly winds were constantly brought in by the North Pacific anticyclone, failing to cool down the temperatures that rose during the day,” said the KMA.

Though cloudy skies were predicted across the country with small amounts of intermittent showers, heat wave warnings were issued nationwide on July 29, continuing from those given over the weekend.

According to the KMA, average daytime temperatures nationwide on July 29 were expected to be above 30 deg C. However, due to humidity levels, temperatures felt as hot as 35 deg C in certain parts of the country.

On July 29, heat wave warnings were issued at the “alert” level for most parts of the country. Warnings at this level — the third highest in its four-tier system — are activated when the highest apparent temperature is forecast to exceed 35 deg C for two consecutive days or more.

Seoul expected daytime temperatures on July 29 to reach as high as 30 deg C, while other cities like Jeonju and Daegu were set to see temperatures reach as high as 34 deg C and 36 deg C, respectively. In Gangneung, daytime temperatures were forecast to go as high as 35 deg C.

Due to the number of days with scorching heat, a rapid increase in the number of patients with heat-related illnesses was observed from July 22 to 27. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on July 29, up to 289 patients were recorded over the six days.

Since May 20, the agency has seen up to 925 cases of heat-related illnesses. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK