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| A woman uses clothing to shield herself from the sun as she crosses the street near Cheonggye Stream in central Seoul, Tuesday, amid the continuing heat wave. / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul |
By Lee Suh-yoon
A continuing heat wave is forcing Koreans indoors, and subsequently changing their daily lives.
Jo Yu-jin, 22, a university student, says the heat makes it difficult to arrange outdoor activities with friends.
"In the past summers, we used to meet up outdoors for a walk through the park, or a bicycle ride," Jo said. "Now everyone meets up indoors – at billiard rooms, karaoke rooms, or internet cafes. We also use the underground subway paths as much as possible when we move between locations."
Casual gatherings between friends are now arranged for the evenings so people can avoid stepping out in the heat, Jo added.
A deadly heat wave has gripped the country for the past two weeks as two high pressure systems converged over the Korean Peninsula and neighboring Japan, trapping hot air. On Tuesday, the mercury reached 40.3 degrees Celsius in Yeongcheon, North Gyeongsang Province.
Most parts of the country have recorded temperatures of over 35 degrees for days, according to the nation's weather agency.
Kakao Taxi, a service connecting taxi drivers and passengers, said it has been seeing a sharp increase in taxi calls over the past two weeks as people tried to move even in a short distance by taxi. It also said the total number of taxi calls in July was 20 percent higher than in the same month last year.
Even the beaches, the most popular holiday destination in the summer, have been abandoned in the continuing heat, beach management officials said.
"I would say there are around 40 percent fewer visitors than last year," an employee at Sokcho Beach in Gangwon Province on the eastern coast of the country, said. "We're also seeing more visitors in the evenings."
More people are seeking out cool air-conditioned spaces to rest during the day. Danzam, a nap cafe in Yeouido, Seoul, which has reclining sofa beds, says the heat is attracting more customers.
"We used to have around 70 customers at lunch time. Now there are around 100," a Danzam employee said, Thursday.
Some, worried about running up electricity bills, are making more frequent visits to big retail marts or shopping malls, known for their heavily air-conditioned environment.
"I do not want to waste electricity by turning on the air-conditioner while I'm alone at home during the day," Shin Jong-gyun, 60, a housewife, said. "So I end up visiting Emart more often, to pass the time while also buying groceries."
The parking lot of the mart is almost full although she usually visits it in the middle of the day on a weekday, Shin said. "I think all the other housewives in the neighborhood are also at the shopping mart these days like me."
Food delivery orders by households have simultaneously gone up with the temperature as people avoid both dining out and cooking in front of a stove.
"The total order volume on our platform last weekend on July 21 and 22 was 17 percent higher than that from two weeks ago on July 7 and 8 when the temperatures were below 30 degrees Celsius" an official from Baemin, the nation's most popular food delivery app, said Wednesday.
Some earlier hoped Typhoon Jongdari, now moving toward Japan from the south, would push away the Pacific high pressure system locked over the peninsula. Recent weather forecasts say, however, that the typhoon will probably veer past or fade out before it reaches Korea.
As of Thursday morning, 17 people have died of heatstroke and nearly 1,500 people have been treated for heat-related illnesses, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
