Southern part of the country to see heavy snowfall of up to 25 centimeters until Wednesday

A pedestrian crosses the street in a thick padded jacket near Jung-gu, central Seoul, Monday morning, amid temperatures as low as minus 4 degrees Celsius. (Yonhap)
A pedestrian crosses the street in a thick padded jacket near Jung-gu, central Seoul, Monday morning, amid temperatures as low as minus 4 degrees Celsius. (Yonhap)

The year's first cold wave advisories were set to take effect in Seoul late Monday, with wind chills expected to fall to as low as minus 22 degrees Celsius on Tuesday morning, according to the state weather agency. The Seoul Metropolitan Government planned to activate a monitoring system as a cold wave warning was scheduled for northeastern Seoul from 9 p.m. Monday, while the rest of the capital would remain under a cold wave watch.

In South Korea, a cold wave warning is issued when morning lows are forecast to dip to below minus 15 C for two consecutive days, while a cold wave watch is issued when low temperatures are expected to stay below minus 12 C.

From Tuesday, the rest of the country can also expect to see morning lows ranging between minus 15 C and minus 5 C. According to the KMA, a cold wave watch has been issued in Gyeonggi Province, Gangwon Province, North Chungcheong Province and North Gyeongsang Province as of 5 p.m., Monday.

Due to strong winds exceeding 55 kilometers per hour in most regions, the wind chill will make it feel even colder, with most parts of the country including Seoul seeing wind chill temperatures below minus 20 C.

According to the KMA, temperatures through Wednesday will be 5 degrees below seasonal norms due to cold northwesterly winds moving into the Korean Peninsula, with both morning and daytime temperatures expected to remain below the freezing point.

On Tuesday, daytime temperatures are expected to reach minus 6 C nationwide. On Wednesday, morning lows are expected to reach as low as minus 12 C, while daytime temperatures are expected to reach minus 5 C.

Though the forecast may change, the cold snap is expected to last until Friday, with daytime temperatures rising back above zero next week.

In addition to the cold, the Jeolla provinces, South Chungcheong Province and Jeju Island can expect to see up to 25 centimeters of heavy snow starting late Monday through Wednesday.

On South Chungcheong Province's western coast, the KMA predicted accumulated snowfall of up to 5 to 10 cm. Some regions could see up to 15 cm of snow.

Five to 20 cm of accumulated snowfall is expected in the central area of the Jeolla provinces, with heavily hit regions seeing up to 25 cm of snow. Other parts of North and South Jeolla provinces can expect to see more than 10 cm of accumulated snow, while mountainous regions of Jeju Island may receive between 10 and 30 cm of snow.

The KMA added that the western coast along South Chungcheong Province, North Jeolla Province and the western parts of South Jeolla Province may see snowfall ranging between 1 and 3 cm per hour, triggering a heavy snow warning. As of 5 p.m., Monday, a heavy snow advisory had already been issued for the Chungcheong and Jeolla provinces as well as mountainous areas of Jeju Island.

In South Korea, a heavy snow advisory is issued when snowfall exceeding 5 cm is expected within the next 24 hours. A heavy snow warning is issued when snowfall exceeding 20 cm -- or 30 cm in mountainous areas -- is expected within 24 hours.

The KMA added that these snow clouds will then expand toward the Gyeongsang provinces as well as the Greater Seoul area -- comprising Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province -- triggering snowfall in those regions from Thursday afternoon.

With extremely cold temperatures and heavy snow predicted for the next few days, the Ministry of Interior and Safety held a countermeasures meeting with local governments and relevant agencies on Monday to discuss measures to minimize casualties and property damage.

During the meeting, acting Interior Minister Yi Han-kyung urged officials to “mobilize all available resources to minimize damage caused by the cold wave and heavy snowfall.” Yi also urged them to undertake “swift safety measures and snow removal operations” to prevent traffic accidents caused by icy roads, while also giving “special attention” to protecting vulnerable groups, such as the homeless, the elderly and outdoor workers.


lee.jungjoo@heraldcorp.com