By Park Si-soo
Staff Reporter

Record high snowfall blanketed the central part of the Korean peninsula on the first working day of 2010, Monday, causing massive flight cancellations and snarled road traffic.

The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said 25.8 centimeters of snow had fallen in Seoul, breaking the previous record of 25.6 centimeters set on Jan. 28, 1969. Weathermen said that the snowfall was the largest amount recorded in the capital since data were first collected in 1937.

``There is no disputing it’s the heaviest snowfall in a century,’’ a weatherman said.

The snow, which started to cover the central part of the peninsula including Seoul and Incheon from 5 a.m., halted in the evening, but the KMA forecast it will continue until Thursday on the west and south coasts and Jeju Island.

Incheon located 40 kilometers west of Seoul had 22.3 centimeters of snow during the period of time, marking the second largest amount there following 30 centimeters recorded on Dec. 22, 1973.

The administration issued a heavy snow alert for Seoul and the surrounding areas, where just over 17 centimeters of snow fell in just four hours.

Icy roads are expected Tuesday morning with the mercury expected to drop to nearly minus 12 degrees Celsius.

“Extreme caution will be required when leaving home,” a KMA spokesman said. “It would be better for senior citizens to stay at home in the days to come.”

Seoul, home to some 12 million people, and Incheon, the second largest port city in the country, were most affected by the inclement weather.

The heavier-than-expected snow clogged road traffic networks in and outside Seoul, forcing countless people to arrive at work late. Some ministers were late for this year’s first Cabinet meeting presided over by President Lee Myung-bak at Cheong Wa Dae.

“I spent more than four hours to get to my office in southern Seoul,” said Byeon Whee, who lives in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. “Dozens of people in my office also arrived late.”

Subways were crowded all day long and many flights were either delayed or canceled. To cope with the ``explosive’’ increase in users, two service providers ㅡ Seoul Metro and Seoul Metropolitan Rapid Transit Corporation ㅡ extended their working hours until 2 a.m., Tuesday.

All 46 domestic flights from Gimpo International Airport were grounded, while several international delays were reported at Incheon International Airport.

Authorities mobilized as much manpower and vehicles as possible, including soldiers and military equipment to remove snowdrifts and spray snow-melting calcium chloride on all major roads and highways.

The government said nearly 10,000 civil servants and soldiers in Seoul, and Gyeonggi and Gangwon provinces were engaged in snow-removal operations. More than 3,600 workers were mobilized in the capital alone.

To facilitate the operation, Seoul took the unprecedented action of seeking help from private companies. A city official said, ``We are seeking help from private companies with snow-removal equipment at the request of Mayor Oh Se-hoon.’’

The KMA cited an overly expanded continental high pressure front as the major culprit for the snowfall.

``The snow first hit the west coast of the peninsula as the high pressure expanded,’’ the KMA spokesman said. ``It’s expected to grow further and the southern part of the country including Jeju Island will come under its influence.’’

pss@koreatimes.co.kr