South Korea records its highest ever temperature

South Korea has registered its highest temperature since records began more than a century ago, as authorities warned people to “immediately” stop all outdoor activities in affected areas.

The south-eastern city of Yangsan saw the temperature reach 42.5C on Sunday afternoon, the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said, the highest temperature reported since modern weather observation began in 1904.

Yangsan has been the centre of an ongoing heatwave, where temperatures exceeded 40C for a fifth consecutive day on Sunday, while many other cities including Daegu and Busan are seeing temperatures climb into the high 30s.

People gathered in airconditioned shopping malls or cafes to escape the blistering temperatures. Others sought relief under mist-spray zones set up in Seoul. Ju Dong-yeol, 27, took refuge from the heat in a Starbucks in the South Korean capital, along with his parents and told AFP “it is too hot to be outside doing anything”.

“I can’t think of anything else to do other than stay in airconditioned places like home, shopping malls and cafes,” the office worker said.

The city of Gyeongju, about 240km south-east of Seoul, reached 40.3C on Sunday, its highest recorded temperature in eight years.

North Korea has also faced punishing heat, with temperatures soaring as high as 40C in some regions, state media reported on Monday. Residents in Pyongyang have endured a week of nights where the temperature has not dropped below 25C.

More than 20 localities in South Korea were under emergency heatwave alerts on Sunday – a new warning category introduced this year to better address rising temperatures. An emergency alert is issued when areas experiencing a heatwave are forecast to hit perceived temperatures of 38C or an actual temperature of 39C for the day.