Typhoon Heading North… Torrential Rainfall in the South

Under the influence of the year’s second typhoon Jaebi (Swallow) and a seasonal rain front, heavy rain hit the southern areas yesterday. The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) issued heavy rain alerts for Pusan, Kyungnam, Cholla and Chejudo areas, and issued warnings for Kyungbook and Chungchung. The KMA said the typhoon Jaebi is moving northeastward from 560 km southeast of Shanghai, China. The typhoon will move toward 120 km of the west sea of Suhsan, Chungnam, 3:00 am today, and then will pass through Chungjin, North Korea, around 3:00 pm. The Jaebi, with the central pressure of 998 hectopascals along with the maximum wind velocity of 20 m per second, is moving at the speed of 40 km per hour.

As of 5:00pm, precipitation in southern sea areas amounted to 257mm, 173 mm in Yeosu, 139.5 mm in Haenam, 131 mm in Mokpo, 122.5 mm in Jinjoo, and 58.5 mm in Pusan. The KMA said that after receiving 60 - 80 mm of more rainfall, it should begin to clear up tonight. However, the KMA asked campers and mountain climbers to be careful since Jaebi would bring heavy downpour along with a seasonal rainfall. The KMA added that waves will be 2-5 meters high in the nation’s seas, thunder and lightening will be accompanied by gusty winds in the south and west seas.

Jung Young-Gwan yongari@donga.com