On the evening of the 11th, a citizen is passing through the middle of Jongno-gu, Seoul, speeding up his steps, leaning on a fragile umbrella due to strong winds. 2024.5.11 News 1
This year, May has heavy rain and strong winds every weekend, making it meaningless to call it the “queen of seasons”. After strong rain and wind across the country on the 5th and 6th, the Children’s Day holiday, damage occurred due to strong winds and rain across the country on the 11th. Experts say that the Korean Peninsula is no exception as unusual weather continues around the world due to the effects of recent climate change, and that there is a need to prepare for extreme rain heavy in summer.
● Parasols fly away and street trees fall
According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, on the 11th, strong wind advisories were issued across the country along the coasts, including Incheon and the metropolitan area, including Ansan, Siheung and Gimpo in Gyeonggi Province, Taean and Dangjin in South Chungcheong Province, Yeongdeok and Pohang in North Gyeongsang Province, and Haenam and Mokpo in Jeollanam-do. A strong wind advisory is issued when wind speeds are expected to be over 14 meters per second based on land, or when instantaneous wind speeds are expected to be over 20 meters per second.
The damage continued from strong winds. At around 11 a.m. on the 11th, at a shopping center in Giheung-gu, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do, a man in his 30s and a 4-year-old child suffered bruises on their faces and other parts after being struck by a large parasol pole that was flying in the wind. On a road in Sujeong-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, a street tree about 11 meters high fell on a stopped taxi, damaging the vehicle. In Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, a parasol blown away by strong winds got caught on a telephone pole and was removed by fire authorities. Power outages due to strong winds occurred in Bupyeong-gu, Incheon, Bucheon-si, Gyeonggi-do, and Changwon-si, Gyeongnam.
At around 9:25 a.m. on the 11th, an accident occurred in Sinheung-dong, Sujeong-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, where a street tree fell and hit a taxi at a taxi rank the site took control of the t – scene and they are handling the accident. In this accident, the upper part of the back seat of the taxi under the street tree was damaged, but no injuries occurred. 2024.5.11 Provided by Gyeonggi Province Fire and Disaster Headquarters
The highest daily wind speed in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, on the 11th was 15.4 m per second (55 km per hour), the highest ever recorded for mid-May (11th to 20th). The highest instantaneous wind speed in Seoul on this day was 18.3 m per second (66 km per hour), the fourth highest on record for mid-May. The highest daily instantaneous wind speed in Ongjin-gun, Incheon was 21.2 m per second (76 km per hour), and in Taean, South Chungcheong, it was 24.3 m per second (87 km per hour) . The strong wind advisory was lifted in most areas on the night of the 11th.
● Worries about unusual weather such as extreme rain
An official from the Korea Meteorological Administration explained that the reason for the strong winds “is because there was a big difference in air temperature in the trough that passed over the Korean Peninsula this weekend.” The explanation is that due to low pressure in northeast China, a northerly wind blew cold air from the Arctic, while a warm southwesterly wind rose in the south, creating a strong wind as a result the large temperature difference between the two air masses.
Analysis suggests that ‘El Nino’ (something where water temperatures near the equator rise abnormally) will cause unusually strong rain and wind in May. Last May, the El Niño phenomenon occurred in which the temperature of the water in the eastern Pacific Ocean increased, but it has not yet cooled and is causing an unusual climate throughout the Earth.
Last month, unusually heavy rain fell in Guangdong Province in southern China for more than 10 days, and a tornado and fog occurred in Guangzhou, which can be interpreted as the effect of El Nino. At that time, a large amount of water vapor released from southern China flowed into the Korean peninsula on the ‘atmosphere river’, and a 949 mm water bomb was planted on Mt. Sweats in Jeju during the Children’s Day holiday. Ban Ki-seong, head of the K-Weather Forecast Center, said, “El Nino is expected to end in May or June, but the sea surface temperature, which rose significantly last year, has not cooled down easily, so it is likely to have its effect. keep going.” He said, “The damage from the heat and heavy rain is likely to continue this summer.” “It could be big,” he said. The Korea Meteorological Administration also said in the three-month outlook released last month, there is an 80% chance that rainfall from May to July will be above or similar to average.
As global warming continues, abnormal weather events are expected to become more frequent. Last month, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) announced in its ‘Asia Region Climate Status Report 2023’ that “warming in the Asia region is progressing faster than the global average between 1961 and 2023,” and that the damage from climate change was greatest in Asia.
Reporter Joo Ae-jin jaj@donga.com
Incheon = Reporter Gong Seung-bae ksb@donga.com
Yongin = Reporter Lee Gyeong-jin lkj@donga.com
2024-05-12 11:20:00
#Parasols #fly #street #trees #fall.. #Heavy #rain #strong #winds
