Snow will continue to fall in most regions of the country until noon on the 29th, the day of the Lunar New Year. Heavy snowfall is expected in Chungcheong, Honam, and Jeju until the morning of the Lunar New Year.
As of 4 p.m. on the 28th, heavy snow warnings remain in effect across southwestern Gyeonggi, Chungcheong, Honam, inland Gyeongsang, and Jeju, with snow falling at a rate of 1-4 cm per hour. Some areas in Jeju, including Hallasan's Samgakbong and Sasebi, have received nearly 130 cm of snow.
Currently, snow accumulation levels are around 40 cm in places like Hyangrobong in Goseong County, Gangwon, along with Anheung-myeon in Hoengseong County, Deogyusan in Muju County, North Jeolla, and Geumwang-eup in Eumseong County, North Chungcheong. Areas like Bonghwa County in North Gyeongsang (Seokpo-myeon) and Jecheon City in North Chungcheong (Susang-myeon) have accumulated around 30 cm, while Anseong City, Pyeongtaek City, and Danyang County in North Chungcheong have experienced approximately 25 cm.
In Seoul, the snow accumulation at the Seoul Weather Observatory in Jongno District is 2.1 cm; however, Gwanak District has 13.7 cm, and Gangbuk District has 7.1 cm.
Snowfall is expected to continue intermittently until noon on the 29th in southern Gyeonggi, inland and mountainous Gangwon, Chungcheong, Honam, western and northeastern inland North Gyeongsang, western inland South Gyeongsang, and Jeju (with Jeju experiencing snow or rain). Other regions are expected to see only light snow late on the night of the 28th (excluding northern Seoul, Incheon, northern Gyeonggi, and the east coast) or until noon on the 29th (excluding western inland areas of North Gyeongsang).
The expected additional snow accumulation by the 29th is the highest in the mountainous areas of Jeju at 5-15 cm, followed by Chungcheong and Honam (excluding eastern South Jeolla) at 5-10 cm (with Chungnam and North Jeolla reaching up to 15 cm). Other regions, except the mid-highlands of Jeju (3-8 cm) and central Daegu and North Gyeongsang (around 1 cm), are expected to receive about 1-5 cm of snow.
From the 29th, hefty snowfall of 1-3 cm per hour may occur in Chungcheong, Honam, and Jeju, necessitating precautions to avoid damage.
The accumulation of snow that does not melt may become more problematic than the actual snowfall.
Currently, a cold wave warning has been issued for the northern Gyeonggi, inland and mountainous Gangwon, central and northern Chungcheong, and northern and northeastern inland North Gyeongsang, where morning temperatures are expected to remain below minus 12 degrees Celsius (around minus 15 degrees for inland and mountainous Gangwon). Additionally, the central region, eastern North Jeolla, and northern inland North Gyeongsang are projected to persist in temperatures below 0 degrees Celsius (with inland and mountainous Gangwon expected to stay around minus 5 degrees) throughout the day.
Nationwide, the expected low temperatures in the morning of the 29th are forecasted to range from minus 13 degrees to minus 1 degree, while the maximum daytime temperatures are predicted between minus 5 degrees and 6 degrees above zero. The predicted low and high temperatures for major cities include ▲Seoul: minus 7 degrees and minus 1 degree ▲Incheon: minus 6 degrees and minus 1 degree ▲Daejeon: minus 6 degrees and 1 degree ▲Gwangju and Daegu: minus 3 degrees and 3 degrees ▲Ulsan: minus 2 degrees and 3 degrees ▲Busan: minus 2 degrees and 5 degrees.
It is also expected that winds of around 55 km/h (15 m/s) will blow strongly. High wind warnings are in effect for coastal areas and mountains, parts of North Chungcheong, and Jeju, where wind speeds may exceed 70 km/h (90 km/h in mountainous areas) by the 29th (in Gangwon's eastern coastal and mountainous areas, by the 30th); therefore, precautions are necessary.
Strong winds blowing at 30-60 km/h are expected in the western part of the West Sea, the southern western offshore sea, the eastern offshore sea, in front of Busan and Ulsan, and near Jeju (excluding the southern offshore sea) until the 29th, while strong winds are also expected in the eastern offshore sea until the 31st.
Waves are expected to exceed 5.0 m in height in the offshore of the West Sea, the western offshore of the southern sea, the eastern outbound sea of the southern sea, the central offshore of the eastern sea, the southern offshore of the eastern sea, and off the coast of Jeju.