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| People take a stroll despite the cold weather casting long shadows at Gongjicheon Amusement Park in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, Jan. 5. Yonhap |
By Kwon Mee-yoo
The mercury has dipped way below freezing this winter and an Arctic cold air mass that swept across the country has been behind the frigid temperatures.
Seoul saw temperatures drop to minus 18.6 degrees Celsius, Jan. 8, which was the lowest in 35 years. The lowest-ever temperature recorded in Seoul was minus 19.2 degrees Celsius, Jan. 5, 1986, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration, which began collecting such data in 1980.
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| Buildings in downtown Seoul emit steam Jan. 8, when Seoul experienced its coldest temperature in 35 years at minus 18.6 degrees Celcius. Yonhap |
Temperatures in the mountainous areas of Gangwon Province dropped to nearly minus 30 degrees.
The cold spell also blanketed the country in thick snow. Jeju Island received over 50 centimeters of snow last week, with the accumulated snowfall on Mount Halla reaching up to 140 centimeters.
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| Fishing boats stand in the frozen waters of the Geumgwang Reservoir in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, Jan. 4. Yonhap |
Heavy snowfall turned the local landscape into a white wonderland, but the seemingly beautiful scenery created some major headaches too.
Heavy snow advisories and warnings had been issued and huge traffic jams stretched for kilometers along snow-covered roads in many parts of the country, while trains and flights were canceled.
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| A neighborhood in northern Gwangju, a metropolitan city about 330 kilometers south of Seoul, is covered after heavy snowfall amid a cold wave warning issued Jan. 7. Yonhap |
Most food delivery services, which have become practically indispensable during the COVID-19 pandemic, were also suspended due to concerns over the safety of motorcycle delivery people amid the heavy snowfall.
As the extreme cold snap gripped Korea, over 7,500 reports of frozen and burst water meters were made from Jan. 6 to 11 and power demand reached an all-time high, causing blackouts in more than 78,000 homes across the country.
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| People go canoeing on Soyang River in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, Jan. 8, when the province's morning low plummeted to minus 29.1 degrees Celsius. Yonhap |
