Extreme Weather Events in South Korea

 

Extreme Weather Events

An extreme weather event that occurred in South Korea would be the 2016 heatwave. The heatwave caused extreme damage to agriculture, to the people and their well-being, and the surrounding environment. When the heat hit the agricultural sector, many plants, and animals died. "The repair costs for these damages were over 2,000 million KRW" (Israel/Barber). In order to avoid a similar situation, the government decided to look further into the statistics of the climate and the soil moisture surrounding the agricultural sector. 

In the maritime-fisheries sector, the aquaculture died as well due to the extreme water temperature, the cost was 50 billion KRW which is 44 million USD. "Due to these heat waves in Seoul, which lasted 24 days, including 32 days of tropical nights, national ozone warnings were issued on a regular basis" (Israel/Barber).

Because of the heatwave, almost everyone bought an air conditioner or fan, that's when electricity consumption was at it's maximum. Many were also diagnosed with heatstroke, you can visit the KDCA website for more information on the number of people that developed health issues during the heatwave in 2016.

Works Cited

Israel, Ron, and Lois Barber. “South Korea Extreme Weather Event.” Climate Scorecard, 6 Feb. 2018, www.climatescorecard.org/2017/04/south-korea-extreme-weather-event/.

Mass Wasting Risks in South Korea

 

Mass Wasting Risks

According to NPS.gov, "mass wasting is the movement of rock and soil down slope under the influence of gravity." If rainfall or earthquakes affects mountains, forests, or mass amounts of land, it can cause rock falls, landslides, mudslides, and overall debris will be scattered. The amount of damage that could be caused by mass wasting depends on the amount of water that came into contact, how steep the slope is, and how large the mass is. The picture below shows how mass wasting can be caused in different scenarios.

In my previous blogs I explained how South Korea is at great risks for flooding, earthquakes, and more. Recently, South Korea's capital, Seoul, has been exposed to a monsoon with consistent rainfall that lasted for 42 days that caused landslides, debris, and flooding in the city areas and highways, taking lives of many. 

According to Dave Petley, there were two major landslides in the Gang-won Province and Seoul. In the images shown, it looks like a mudslide is also what took place as it was near a lot of vegetation. The debris from that actually penetrated many buildings.

According to BBC News, the Han River experienced major flooding into the city of Seoul due to the rainfall that occurred consecutively for 42 days. "15 people have died and more than 1,500 have been forced from their homes.." Due to the corona-virus, it is extremely difficult to shelter the people affected and the ones who lost their homes. 

Works Cited:

“Mass Wasting.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 11 Sept. 2019, 

www.nps.gov/subjects/erosion/mass-wasting.htm.

Petley, Dave. “Landslides Mudslides.” The Landslide Blog, American Geophysical Union, 28 July 2011, blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2011/07/27/devastating-landslides-in-south-korea-and-fears-of-more-to-come/.