Korea’s extreme heat puts construction workers, farmers at growing risk of illness, death
A worker drinks water at a housing redevelopment construction site in Jangwi 4 District, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, May 8. Korea Times photo by Wang Tae-seok
Last July, a Vietnamese migrant worker in his 20s was found dead while working at an apartment construction site in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province. His body temperature was measured at 40.2 degrees Celsius, while the city’s daytime high reached 38.3 degrees on the day he died.
That same month, another worker in his 60s lost consciousness and died while organizing shopping carts in a shopping mall parking lot in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. In both cases, their death was linked to extreme heat.
Such grim cases could happen again this year, as forecasters warn of another unusually hot summer. For outdoor workers at construction sites and farmers in fields and paddies, who spend long hours under scorching sunlight, the risk of heat-related illness and even death is far from isolated. Heat-related illness is increasingly becoming an issue that requires actions from employers as well, such as guaranteed rest breaks, and also from the health and labor authorities.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said Thursday it will begin its annual surveillance of emergency room patients with heat-related illnesses, as part of efforts to reduce health risks from extreme heat.
The program, which covers emergency rooms at medical institutions nationwide, tracks heat-related illness cases during the summer months. The surveillance will run from Friday through Sept. 30, the agency said.
This graphic created using generative artificial intelligence shows the estimated number of heat-related illness cases
Heat-related illnesses are medical conditions caused by exposure to high temperatures, such as heatstroke, heat exhaustion, heat cramps and heat syncope. According to health authorities, the estimated number of heat-related illness patients has risen sharply in recent years, as summers grow hotter and harder to endure.
The number of patients reached 4,460 last year, a tenfold increase from 443 in 2011. It was the second-highest figure on record, after 2018, when 4,526 cases were reported during one of the worst heat waves in Korea’s history. Deaths from heat-related illnesses have also increased, from around 10 per year in the 2010s to roughly 30 per year in the 2020s.
More concerningly, this summer is expected to be just as punishing as last year’s, if not worse. The Korea Meteorological Administration forecast a 60 percent chance that July’s average temperature will exceed the past average range of 24 to 25.2 degrees Celsius.
It has led the agency to introduce a new "Extreme Heat Severe Warning," a higher-level alert than the existing heat wave warning. The highest-level warning is issued when the daily high reaches 39 degrees Celsius or when the apparent temperature rises to 38 degrees or higher.
A construction worker drinks water to cool off at a construction site in Gwangju, July 2, 2025. Yonhap
Construction workers, farmers among most vulnerable
Data show that outdoor laborers and agricultural workers are especially vulnerable to heat-related illnesses. Outdoor worksites reported the highest number of cases last year, with 1,413, accounting for 32.1 percent of the total. Fields and paddies followed with 542 cases, or 12.2 percent, while roadsides accounted for 522 cases, or 11.7 percent.
The pattern was even clearer among deaths. Of those who died from heat-related illnesses, 79.3 percent had been outdoors when they were affected.
In response, the Ministry of Employment and Labor on Wednesday announced a set of guidelines recommending that all outdoor work be suspended, regardless of the time of day, when an Extreme Heat Severe Warning is issued. Exceptions would be limited to emergency response personnel, such as rescue workers.
The KDCA, meanwhile, advises people to avoid going outdoors during heat waves, block direct sunlight with parasols or hats and get enough rest and fluids as part of its health guidelines for coping with extreme heat.
Kim Tae-lim, a professor of emergency medicine at Samsung Medical Center, said sudden cramps in frequently used areas such as the calves, thighs or fingers, as well as headaches, dizziness, vomiting and fatigue, could be warning signs of heat-related illness.
“If heat-related illness is suspected during outdoor activity, people should move to the shade or indoors to cool down, then replenish fluids and electrolytes with water or sports drinks,” Kim said. “If symptoms do not improve quickly, they should seek medical attention.”
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.