Cold wave halts airplanes, freezes water meters

 

A portion of the Han River is frozen in Yeouido, Seoul, Tuesday, as a cold wave alert has been issued in most regions across South Korea. (Yonhap)

With a heavy snow advisory in effect centered on the Chungcheong and Jeolla provinces, frozen water meters, canceled flights and restricted ship operations have been reported across the country.

No human lives have been lost due to the cold wave and snowfall, but there were damages to facilities across the country as of Tuesday afternoon, according to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters.

There were 58 cases of damage related to water facilities, including water meters and pipes, in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province. In response, the Seoul Metropolitan Government issued an alert on freezing of water gauges on Monday. The alert is to last until 9 a.m. Thursday. The warning is the third stage of a four-stage water meter freeze forecasting system and is issued when the lowest temperature is below minus 10 degrees Celsius for two consecutive days.

A total of 97 flights, including 85 domestic flights and 12 international flights, at Jeju International Airport had been canceled or preempted as of 7 a.m. on Tuesday. Thirty-five flights were canceled and 200 flights were delayed Monday. Currently, warnings of snowfall, strong wind and rapidly changing wind have been issued in Jeju Island.

Strong winds also affected the sea, with only two routes out of ten in operation. Seven out of ten passenger ships for Jeju Island had also been stopped.

Access to 162 trails in nine national parks, including Seoraksan, Mudeungsan and Bukhansan, was restricted.

The cold wave that struck the country from Monday is expected to further freeze the nation, keeping daytime temperatures below the freezing point in most regions, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration.

By Choi Jeong-yoon(jychoi@heraldcorp.com)