Jung Da-hyun is a reporter at The Korea Times, covering social issues in Korea, including foreign residents, education, environment and politics. Driven by a deep interest in people’s stories, she focuses on investigative and feature reporting through direct interviews and field coverage. She received the Amnesty International Korea Media Award for her “Deepfake Crisis at Schools” series. Reach her at dahyun08@koreatimes.co.kr. Always open to hearing your stories.
Monsoon season to arrive early in Jeju, marking third-quickest start on record
A pedestrian walks through the rain with an umbrella in Seogwipo, Jeju Island, April 22. Yonhap
By Jung Da-hyun
Summer’s defining deluge is set to arrive unusually early on Jeju Island this week, with the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) announcing Wednesday that monsoon season is expected to begin Thursday.
It will mark only the third time since 1973 that the island — typically the first in the country to be hit by the seasonal rains — has seen such an early onset.
A monsoon season declaration by the KMA signals high humidity and the likelihood of frequent rainfall in the region.
The season has arrived earlier than usual in Jeju only twice before — on June 10 in both 2011 and 2020. This year’s onset is also about a week ahead of the average start date of June 19.
A northward-moving stationary front along the edge of the Pacific high pressure system and moisture from Typhoon Wutip — the season’s first, currently forming near the Philippines — is expected to trigger the start of this year's monsoon season on Jeju Island.
The typhoon was observed developing 610 kilometers west of Manila on Tuesday morning. While the storm is unlikely to have a direct impact on Korea, the hot and humid air it carries is expected to raise humidity levels nationwide starting Thursday, pushing up perceived temperatures.
Rainfall in Jeju is forecast to reach 20 to 60 millimeters, with some areas likely to see more than 80 millimeters and heavy downpours of 10 to 20 millimeters per hour.
The rain is expected to move into the Jeolla and Gyeongsang regions on Friday. Showers will persist throughout the day in Jeju, South Jeolla and South Gyeongsang provinces, spreading north to North Jeolla and southern North Gyeongsang provinces by morning, then reaching Chungcheong and northern North Gyeongsang provinces in the central region in the afternoon.
Rainfall is forecast to reach 10 to 40 millimeters in South Jeolla, the southern coast of South Gyeongsang Province, Busan and Gwangju; 5 to 30 millimeters in inland areas of South Gyeongsang Province and Ulsan; and 5 to 20 millimeters in North Jeolla, North Gyeongsang provinces, Daegu and the Chungcheong region. The stationary front is also expected to gradually move northward.
Rain is forecast to fall across most of the country on Saturday, including the Seoul Metropolitan Area and Gangwon Province, and likely to stop later that night.
Although forecasts remain uncertain, the stationary front is expected to move further north after June 19, signaling a likely start to the monsoon season in Korea’s southern and central regions around that time.
On average, monsoon season begins on June 23 in the south and June 25 in the central region.
Meanwhile, ahead of heavy downpours and the risk of sudden flooding linked to the approaching monsoon and mid-June atmospheric instability, police will increase preventive patrols at 958 underpasses and 8,694 high-risk locations nationwide.