Heat kills 19 in South Korea this summer: government agency
South Korea’s record-breaking heatwave has caused over 2,200 heat-related illnesses, with temperatures reaching a national record of 42.5°C in Yangsan.
A man wipes off sweat at a jjokbang village which is a tiny single-room housing district, during the first-ever severe heatwave warning in Seoul, South Korea, Aug 4, 2026. (Photo: REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji)
SEOUL: South Korea's summer heat has killed 19 people so far this year, a government health agency said on Tuesday (Aug 4), as the nation swelters in a wave of searing weather.
A total of 2,221 people had suffered heat-related illnesses between May 15 and Aug 3, of whom 19 died, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said.
President Lee Jae Myung earlier asked authorities to boost support for those affected by the ongoing record heatwave.
The whole of Seoul also remained under the highest-level heat alert on Tuesday, issued when the heat index is forecast to reach 38C or temperatures are expected to climb to 39C or higher.
"Extreme, life-threatening heat is forecast," the weather agency said in a statement earlier on Tuesday.
South Korea set an all-time temperature record on Sunday, when the southeastern city of Yangsan reached 42.5C.
