South Korea heatwave kills 19

South Korea’s heat wave has become a national emergency measured not only in temperatures but in deaths, hospitalizations and disruptions to daily life. Health authorities said on August 5 that 21 people had died from heat-related illnesses this year and 2,238 people had been treated since May 15, as record temperatures spread across the country. The Korea Baseball Organization canceled games on August 5 and 6 after a spectator collapsed during a game and other fans showed symptoms of heat illness. President Lee Jae Myung has called the heat wave a national disaster and ordered ministries to step up protections for vulnerable people. ### How bad has the heat become? South Korea recorded 42.5 degrees Celsius in Yangsan on August 2, the highest temperature ever measured in the country, according to local reports cited by Yonhap and the Korea Herald. Seoul and nearby parts of Gyeonggi Province also came under the capital region’s first Heat Wave Emergency Warning this week, as the Korea Meteorological Administration expanded its highest-tier alert. (m-en.yna.co.kr) The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said the dead include a large share of elderly people, with 13 of the first 19 reported deaths aged 80 or older. ChosunBiz, citing the agency’s August 4 data, said 2,221 heat-related illness cases and 19 presumed deaths had been recorded through August 3, showing how quickly the toll rose over the following day. (koreaherald.com) ### Why did baseball games get canceled? The Korea Baseball Organization first said on August 1 that clubs could delay game starts by up to an hour and that games could be canceled in areas under severe heat-wave warnings. By August 5, the league canceled all regular-season games for two days, citing risks to players and spectators. The Korea Herald reported that a fan collapsed from cardiac arrest during a game the night before, and local reports said 25 other spectators showed signs of heat-related illness, with two needing urgent treatment. (biz.chosun.com) The newspaper said the same day’s cancellations were an unprecedented response to extreme heat. ### What is the government doing now? (en.yna.co.kr) The South Korean government raised its central disaster response level for heat on August 2, according to the government policy briefing site Korea.kr. The measures include checking on high-risk elderly residents twice a day and halting outdoor work under senior job programs when a severe heat warning is in effect. (koreaherald.com) President Lee said on August 4 that the heat wave should be treated as a national disaster, according to Reuters reporting carried by U.S. News and other outlets. Officials were told to inspect power systems and strengthen protections for people most exposed to the heat, including older residents. (korea.kr) ### Who is most at risk? People 65 and older accounted for about 34% of heat-illness cases reported through August 3, ChosunBiz said, citing health authorities. The same report said the toll remained below the same period last year, but older adults and frail residents were still especially vulnerable because of the intensity of the current heat. (usnews.com) More than 20 million people live in the greater Seoul metropolitan area, where the top-tier warning was extended to southern Incheon and nine cities in Gyeonggi Province, according to reporting compiled by TechTimes from official alerts. That widened the emergency from the country’s hottest southern areas to its largest urban concentration. (biz.chosun.com) ### What happens next? The Korea Baseball Organization said it would convene an emergency executive committee meeting on August 6 with team general managers and players’ association representatives to discuss broader heat-wave measures. South Korean authorities are expected to keep updating the national heat-illness tally daily as the warning remains in place across large parts of the country. (chosun.com) (techtimes.com)