Fine dust clouds Seoul sky
By Ko Dong-hwan
Pedestrians wear masks near Gwanghwamun metro station in Jung-gu, Seoul, on Sep. 19, when the city’s air pollution abruptly worsened. / Yonhap
The sky over Seoul turned foggy from Tuesday morning following weeks of relatively clean air.
Chinese smog drifted to the Korean Peninsula, sending the air quality index across most of the capital to over 150 micrograms per cubic meter, according to global air monitoring site Air Visual.
Incheon, west of Seoul and closer to China, took a more direct hit, with Jooan-dong in Nam-gu recording 176 micrograms per cubic meter as of 3 p.m.
The entire western regions and Busan suffered “unhealthy” air pollution, the site showed, while eastern regions remained “moderate” or “unhealthy for sensitive groups.”
Busan once recorded the second-worst air quality index in the world with 152 micrograms per cubic meter one afternoon, according to the site.
The average air quality index in Korea on the day was similar to those in eastern Chinese provinces like Shandong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Fujian as well as mega cities such as Beijing and Shanghai.
The Korea Meteorological Administration also warned Tuesday that central regions in Korea and other provinces below can expect rain, thunder, heavy gusts of wind, and hail in the evening.