Korea on alert as another typhoon approaches

This image from the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) website, Monday, shows the expected course of Typhoon Hagibis, the 19th typhoon of the year. /Captured from KMA

By Bahk Eun-ji

Korea is bracing for a possible hit from Typhoon Hagibis, with people still engaged in cleanup operations following last week's Typhoon Mitag that made landfall on the peninsula.

Although the storm is heading for Japan at the moment and is expected to land at Kyushu, the huge weather front is forecast to have an impact on southern regions of the peninsula.

As of 9 a.m., Monday, Hagibis was traveling west-northwest about 550 kilometers east of Guam at 27 kilometers per hour (km/h), with an atmospheric pressure of 915 hectopascals at its center, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).

The maximum wind speed at its center was 133 km/h. The typhoon is expected to grow and become stronger, with winds of up to 180 km/h from Thursday to Saturday.

“Hagibis could develop into the strongest and largest typhoon this year,” said a KMA official. “Although it is still far away from the peninsula and its course can change, we are closely watching the typhoon because it could have an impact on the country due to its huge size.”

If the typhoon approaches the country, it will be the eighth to affect the Korean Peninsula this year, the most for any year since 1959 when the weather agency began collecting data.