South Korea’s President Lee calls heatwave a national disaster as deaths rise to 19
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People cooling off below sunshades over the Cheonggyecheon Stream in Seoul on Aug 3.
PHOTO: AFP
- South Korean President Lee Jae Myung urged authorities to increase support as a heatwave has caused 16 deaths and is becoming a frequent extreme weather event.
- The Korea Meteorological Administration recorded the highest temperature in 122 years, 42.5°C in Yangsan, and issued the first-ever heatwave warning for Seoul and Gyeonggi.
- Lee called for a fundamental overhaul of the national crisis system and measures to protect people’s daily lives and inspect power systems amid rising air conditioning demand.
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SEOUL – South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Aug 4 urged the authorities to step up support for people affected by a record heatwave in the country, calling it a national disaster after scorching conditions were blamed for 19 deaths.
Speaking at a Cabinet meeting, Lee called on officials to take necessary measures to protect the daily lives of people and inspect power systems as demand for air-conditioning surges.
“An even greater concern is that abnormal weather conditions make it highly likely that extreme weather will continue for a considerable period,” said Lee, who wants a major redesign of the disaster response system to cope with the hazardous conditions.
The nation’s weather agency said Yangsan, a south-eastern inland city, recorded a temperature of 42.5 deg C on Aug 2, the highest temperature measured in 122 years of weather observations.
The Korea Meteorological Administration also issued its first-ever heatwave warning for parts of Seoul and neighbouring Gyeonggi on Aug 3, extending this to the entire capital on Aug 4.
A heatwave alert advises people to suspend outdoor activities such as farming, sports and work on construction sites.
“I have never felt heat like this so far here,” said Cho Sang-yeon, who has lived for nearly 20 years in a jjokbang village, an area of cheaper single-room housing in western Seoul’s Yeongdeungpo district.
Some residents have been moved to government-provided temporary housing equipped with air-conditioning, though many homeless people also live in the area.
“I feel sorry to see homeless people who are suffering from the heat on the street,” said resident Son Ki-young.
Firefighters and other officials had been spraying water on roads in the area and checking on vulnerable residents for heat-related illnesses, said Jun Hong-cheol, an official at Yeongdeungpo Fire Station.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said on Aug 4 that the death toll from the heatwave has risen to 19, including 13 people aged 80 or above.
Since May 15, 2,025 people have suffered from heat-related illnesses nationwide, according to data from the weather agency.
Two baseball games scheduled for Aug 4 in Seoul and Gwangju were cancelled because of the extreme heat, according to the Korea Baseball Organization’s website. REUTERS
