As the weather heats up rapidly, a 'Severe Heat Wave Warning' has been issued for the first time in history for parts of the Yeongnam region.
The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) issued the Severe Heat Wave Warning for Gyeongsan and Pohang in North Gyeongsang Province, effective as of 10:00 a.m. today (July 12).
A Severe Heat Wave Warning is issued when the daily maximum sensible temperature is expected to reach 38°C or higher, or when the daily maximum temperature is expected to reach 39°C or higher.
The Severe Heat Wave Warning was introduced and has been in operation since June of this year to warn of 'extreme heat' in cases where a standard heat wave warning is insufficient to raise enough awareness.
Yesterday, the Automatic Weather System (AWS) installed in Hayang-eup, Gyeongsan, recorded a temperature of 39.9°C.
In Gigye-myeon, Pohang, the temperature also soared to 37.2°C.
Sensible temperatures in these areas are expected to rise above 38°C again today.
When the KMA analyzed data from the 10-year period between 2016 and last year, it was estimated that if the Severe Heat Wave Warning system had been in place during that time, Gyeongsan would have seen an average of 3.1 days of such warnings per year.
This is the highest figure among all weather advisory zones in the country.
In 53% of the nation's weather advisory zones, temperatures high enough to trigger a Severe Heat Wave Warning have never been recorded.
Following Gyeongsan, the areas with the highest estimated number of days for Severe Heat Wave Warnings were Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province (2.5 days), Anseong, Gyeonggi Province (2.2 days), Daegu (1.6 days), and Yongin, Gyeonggi Province (1.6 days).
With the Severe Heat Wave Warning in effect, the KMA has advised residents in these areas to stop outdoor activities and work, and to utilize heat shelters equipped with air conditioning.
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