Heat wave in South Korea: Seoul reaches 40 degrees Celsius for the first time since 2018

Seoul reached this Friday 40 degrees Celsius for the first time since 2018, while South Korea is experiencing a strong heat wave which has raised the number of deaths related to high temperatures to more than twenty so far this year, reports the South Korean news agency Yonhap.

This Wednesday, South Korean health authorities said that at least 21 people have died so far this year from heat-related illnesses, already surpassing the record reached in all of 2025.

More than 2,400 patients have gone to the emergency room for heat-related symptoms since May, when the government’s surveillance system for heat-related illnesses opened.