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| A woman wearing a face mask crosses a bridge in southern Seoul, Tuesday. A strong yellow dust storm originating from China and Mongolia continued to blanket Korea for the second day. Yonhap |
Workers commuting to work and schoolgoers across South Korea on Tuesday braced for the second day of one of the country's worst yellow dust storms in years as authorities took emergency emissions reduction measures against dangerously high spikes in fine dust levels.
A powerful yellow dust storm originating from the island deserts in northern China and Mongolia blanketed South Korea on Monday, prompting authorities to issue a yellow dust warning for almost all parts of the country for the first time in a decade.
According to weather authorities, the density of fine dust particles smaller than 10 micrometers in diameter, known as PM 10, remained high at 973 micrograms per cubic meter in Gunsan as of 1 a.m. Tuesday.
Authorities here categorize concentrations of PM 10 between zero and 30 micrograms as "good," between 31 and 80 as "normal," between 81 and 150 as "bad" and more than 151 as "very bad."
Readings in Cheongju, Suwon, Cheonan and Seoul reached 496, 321, 278 and 217, respectively. Yellow dust warnings were issued for nearly all regions across the country for the second day in a row.
The National Institute of Environmental Research forecast fine dust in Incheon, part of Gyeonggi Province, the provinces of Chungcheong, Jeolla, Gyeongsang and Jeju to remain in the "very bad' levels throughout the day.
Apparently concerned for their health safety, some workers commuting to work in the morning were spotted covering their faces with double masks, while others were seen waiting for buses not at outdoor stations on the streets but inside nearby buildings.
One convenience store owner in Daejeon, 164 kilometers south of Seoul, said he took from home some saline water to cleanse his eyes, as the extreme amount of dust caused irritation. "The store windows have to be constantly cleaned of the dust," the store owner added.
Emergency emissions reduction measures have been put in place in Busan, Gwangju, South Chungcheong Province, South and North Jeolla provinces, South Gyeongsang Province and Jeju Island.
Vehicles that are categorized as Grade 5 in terms of emission have been prohibited from use in the regions, and 18 coal power plants have also been suspended. (Yonhap)
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