Season’s coldest weather grips S. Korea

SEOUL, Dec. 14 (Yonhap) — South Korea came under the grip of the season’s coldest weather on Wednesday, with the morning lows dipping to minus 15 C in some inland areas, the state weather agency said.

The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said the freezing temperatures were accompanied by strong wind, with the wind velocity reaching up to 16 meters per second in some coastal areas.

In Seoul, morning lows plummeted to minus 11 C and an apparent temperature of nearly minus 20 C as of 7 a.m., the KMA said.

The weather agency forecast that some northern parts of Gyeonggi Province surrounding Seoul will see the temperature drop to up to morning lows of minus 15 C.

On top of the frigid cold weather, snow fell in most parts of the country overnight.

As of 6 a.m., more than 10 centimeters of snow had fallen in Yongin, just south of Seoul, the KMA said.

The KMA said temperatures will remain cold until early next week.