39.5°C Heat Despite Lifted Heavy Heat Warning; Driver's License Exams Also Cut Back

[Anchor]

Although the heavy heat wave warnings have been lifted nationwide, the suffocating heat continued today, August 8, with temperatures soaring close to 40°C (104°F) in various regions. It was a grueling day both for citizens seeking refuge from the heat outdoors and for merchants sweating it out all day. The extreme heat has even led to reduced operations for driver's license exams.

Our first report is by reporter Lee Se-hyeon.

[Reporter]

Beneath the scorching sun, people dip their feet in the water and splash around to blow the heat away.

The temperature here currently exceeds 37°C (99°F), making it extremely hot.

Perhaps because of this, the area is bustling with citizens who came out with their families and friends to find a cool body of water.

[Park Sae-ron and Kang Tae-i / Yongsan-gu, Seoul: The water is really cold and nice, so I think it is the perfect temperature to play with (my child). (It is cool!)]

Traditional market merchants standing in front of fire to cook are drenched in sweat.

[Shim Myeong-ja / Bindaetteok Vendor: Doesn't it feel like it exceeds about 40 degrees? You get dizzy and things like that.]

Ice is not enough against the intense heat; even though it is inconvenient for customers to see, fish must be kept inside refrigerated storage to prevent them from spoiling.

[Jin Mi-hee / Fish Vendor: The weather is so hot that if you leave (the fish) outside, they will end up getting cooked. So we put them all inside those boxes.]

Heavy heat wave warnings were lifted yesterday in most parts of the country, including the Seoul metropolitan area, Gangwon, and Jeonnam, but scorching heat approaching 40°C (104°F) persisted in various places today as well.

The official daytime high in Seoul reached 36.8°C (98°F), dropping slightly compared to yesterday, but severe heat continued across the western part of the Korean Peninsula, with Hwaseong in Gyeonggi Province rising to 39.5°C (103°F) and Hongseong in South Chungcheong Province reaching 38.7°C (102°F).

As the heat wave prolongs, 3 people died from heat-related illnesses yesterday alone, and 202 patients were tallied as having visited hospital emergency rooms.

To prevent heat-related illnesses, the Korea Road Traffic Authority plans to intensively schedule driver's license skills tests during cooler morning hours or suspend exams if the perceived temperature reaches 38°C (100°F).

(Photo: Seol Chi-hwan | Video Editing: Ahn Yeo-jin | Design: Im Chan-hyuk)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.