Heavy snowfall in Seoul; weather advisory issued for greater capital area

Four women pose for a group photo as snow falls on Hongdae street in western Seoul, Dec. 18. Yonhap

South Korea's weather agency issued a heavy snowfall advisory for the greater Seoul area for the first time this winter, Saturday.

The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) put the advisory into effect for Seoul, some of the western parts of the greater capital area, and the western port city of Incheon at 3 p.m.

Snow that began to fall at around 1 p.m. is expected to gradually move east to affect the capital region from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., and inland areas of Gangwon Province between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Seoul, its surrounding areas, Gangwon Province and mountainous regions on Jeju Island could see snow of up to 8 centimeters, while northern areas of Gyeonggi Province and Ulleung Island could experience up to 5cm, according to the KMA.

The agency added that the country is likely to experience more snowfall Sunday and called on people to listen to updated weather forecasts.

At the same time, the entire country came under the grip of the season's coldest weather, pushing down Seoul's daily temperature to the lowest of the season.

The morning low reached minus 11 degrees Celsius in the capital at 7 a.m. Saturday, with morning lows in central regions also falling below zero.

Daily lows in Daejeon and Daegu fell to minus 7.5 C and minus 8.7 C, respectively, while the southern port city of Busan saw its morning temperature drop to minus 6.5 C.

The cold wave is expected to begin easing Sunday, according to the weather agency. (Yonhap)