We may have white Christmas but brace for heavy snow tonight

Icicles form on one of the cascades along the Cheonggyecheon Stream, downtown Seoul, on the freezing Wednesday morning. / Yonhap

By Oh Young-jin

A woman bundles up against the cold in a long padded jacket in Gwanghwamun, Seoul, Tuesday morning. / Yonhap

Temperatures have gone up to more comfortable levels after a chilly morning that saw the mercury down to minus 8 degrees Celsius in Seoul.

But don’t be duped by the “warmer” weather that will likely turn into a nasty cold spell.

The good news is that either snow or rain will fall Dec. 23 (Saturday) and Christmas Eve (Sunday).

Forecasters expect up to 10 centimeters of snow to fall in Seoul and central and southwestern parts of the nation starting as early as this evening and continuing until tomorrow morning.

About a third of the snowfall is forecast for eastern parts of the country. The Korea Meteorological Administration issued a heavy snowfall advisory for central and southern parts and is planning to expand it to other areas.

Temperatures will likely go down after the snow overnight, meaning a usual list of troubles such as icy roads, ruptured water pipes, longer rush hours and an extra layer of thermal underwear.

The cold weather warning is already in effect in the Gangwon and North Chungcheong areas.

Tomorrow afternoon, the weather is forecast to recover to usual temperatures for this time of the year.