Monsoon Season Begins Thursday

The scorching heat wave of around 30 degrees Celsius will temporarily retreat as the monsoon season begins on Thursday.

The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said that a monsoon front will bring clouds and rain on Thursday nationwide, warning that the southern part of the country will experience heavy rainfall until Friday morning, accompanied by gusting winds along with thunder and lightning in some areas.

As of Thursday midnight, Chungcheong, Honam, Gyeongbuk and Jeju are expected to record 30 to 70 millimeters of precipitation; Seoul, Gyeonggi, South Gyeongsang and the central region of Gangwon 10 to 40 millimeters; Yeongdong, Ulleungdo and Dokdo 5 to 30 millimeters.

Although the monsoon season will last for a month, it doesn’t mean the rain will continue every day throughout the nation; only some parts of the country are likely to experience rain on Friday and Saturday. It will start to rain again across the country on Sunday, according to the KMA.

Seoul will be cloudy on Friday and Saturday, followed by rain on Sunday. Jeju, where the rainy season will begin the earliest, is forecast to experience occasional rain from Thursday to Monday.

kimkihy@donga.com