Korea is known for its harsh summers, with high humidity and daily temperatures often exceeding 30 degrees Celsius. This year's summer, however, may be among the hottest so far, with preliminary data for July showing record high temperatures. As locals scatter in search of the best spots to survive the summer heat, here are some of the country's hottest and coolest regions. Daegu, also known as ‘Dae-frica’ The city of Daegu, located in between North and South Gyeongsang

Hashtag Korea Aug. 8, 2023

Last week, a controversy broke out when a female illustrator for South Korean mobile game called Limbus Company was fired over her alleged allegiance to a radical feminist website. It was found that she had retweeted tweets using derogatory terms for men -- typically used by the said website -- on her social media page before she joined the company. Youth groups and workers’ unions across the country fired complaints, including the Korean Women’s Trade Union, which urged the governme

Social Affairs Aug. 4, 2023

The South Korean government said Friday that it will take steps to introduce life sentence without parole as punishment for violent crimes, in response to a series of deadly and seemingly random attacks that have occurred in the past weeks. The announcement came a day after a 22-year-old man injured 14 in what appeared to be a random attack against pedestrians at Seohyeon Station in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province. The culprit -- who showed signs of paranoia -- gave no clear motive to police, fueling

Newsmaker Aug. 4, 2023

Images and messages displayed on a KakaoTalk user's profile can be perceived as a threat, a Seoul court said recently, acknowledging the popular messenger app’s potential use in illegal activities such as making threats or stalking. In a case filed with the Seoul Central District Court, three parents accused the chief of a hagwon, or private education academy, of online threats by posting intimidating photos on his KakaoTalk profile that only they could see. Users of the mobile messen

Social Affairs July 31, 2023

The newest snack craze in South Korea is Meoktaekkang. Convenience stores nationwide are selling out of the fish-flavored snack from local food company Nongshim. For those who may find it hard to understand what the name means, meoktae is one of the many names that Koreans use to refer to Alaska pollack, which is among the most consumed fish here. The "kkang" derives from Nongshim’s signature snack, the shrimp-flavored Saewookkang. The fish, whose most widely recognized Korean na

Hashtag Korea July 29, 2023

Eight months after the deadly Halloween crowd crush in Itaewon, none of the officials in charge of the situation at the time has faced legal punishment, with investigations and trials still ongoing. On Tuesday, the Constitutional Court dismissed impeachment of Interior Minister Lee Sang-min, rejecting the National Assembly's request to remove him over the crowd crush that left 159 dead. Police investigating the incident had earlier decided not to seek criminal charges against him. The trial

Social Affairs July 26, 2023

It was a regular Friday morning on Oct. 21, 1994. The 1.2-kilometer Seongnsu Bridge over the Han River in Seoul was bustling with commuting cars as usual, amid light rain. At around 7:38 a.m., a 48-meter-long section of the bridge suddenly cracked and fell onto the river, bringing down several cars with it. A passenger bus came to a screeching halt but failed to escape its fate, as it too plunged to the water below. So did a few other cars. "Minutes after I entered the Seongsu Bridge as u

Hashtag Korea July 26, 2023

South Korean police have investigated some 2,000 suspicious international packages that have been found across the country for the past four days, with no evidence as of yet suggesting that they were sent as an act of terrorism. As of Monday morning, the National Police Agency has tallied up 2,141 reports of packages of an unidentified nature received by individuals in South Korea since the first case was reported around 12:30 p.m. on Thursday. Officials have examined 587 of the parcels, which

Social Affairs July 23, 2023

A 2-year-old girl has died after falling into a pool at an unstaffed kids cafe in Incheon, which was absent of any safety personnel, local police said Sunday. According to the Incheon Seobu Police Station, the child was playing at the facility in Seo-gu, Incheon, Saturday morning, when she fell into the pool with a depth of 67 centimeters. The parent called 119 emergency services, which attempted to resuscitate the child while taking her to a nearby hospital, to no avail. The incident was report

Social Affairs July 23, 2023

At first glance, South Korea appears to have the right mix for an unmanned retail revolution. The country is known for its swift embrace of technology, widespread adoption of cashless payments, well-developed urban centers and relatively low crime rate. But owners of unmanned shops here say that running an automated store is not as glamorous as it may seem. While the cost and hassle of hiring and retaining human staff are eliminated, new issues arise, ranging from littering and shoplifting, to d

Consumer July 18, 2023

South Korean fire authorities recovered the body of one more person presumed to be one of the victims of the deadly flooding of an underpass in Osong-eup, Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province on late Monday. According to the officials, the body was found near the entrance of the Gungpyeong 2 underpass in Cheongju at 7:52 p.m. Once confirmed, this will be the last of the 12 people who were reported to have gone missing in the tunnel deluge. This will bring the total death toll from the tragedy to

Social Affairs July 17, 2023

CHEONGJU, North Chungcheong Province -- The bullet train slowed to a near-halt as it approached North Chungcheong Province, as if the locomotive was cautious not to bring any more jitters to a region where a record July downpour has taken at least 16 lives as of Monday. Most of the deaths occurred in the flooded underpass in Cheongju's Osong-eup, about 2 kilometers from Osong Station where the KTX train stopped. When this reporter arrived Monday morning, the floodwaters that had engulfed th

Social Affairs July 17, 2023

More deaths have been reported across the country as flooding from heavy rain claimed over 30 lives as of Sunday, including a 34-year-old man who tried to save his father from an open manhole on Saturday afternoon. Both father and son were found dead. The father, chief of a Gwangdeok-ri village in North Chungcheong Province, was trying to remove objects obstructing the town's drainage facilities when he was swept into the manhole. His son jumped in in an attempt to save him. Rescue personne

Social Affairs July 16, 2023

Most intercity train routes across South Korea, except those for the high-speed KTX trains, have been suspended Sunday due to torrential rains that have battered the country for days. All non-KTX trains -- including the Saemaeul and Mugunghwa -- have been grounded as of Sunday morning, according to state-run railway operator Korea Railroad Corp. Korail has closed all 12 train routes that pass through Suwon Station in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, and 21 of 25 routes that stop at Seodaejeon Station.

Social Affairs July 16, 2023

The high school senior being questioned for killing a fellow student was found to have bullied the victim last year, staking a contrast from the suspect’s earlier testimony that the two had been friends. According to the metropolitan education office in Daejeon, the two 17-year-olds attended the same school and were classmates. But the suspect, whose identity has been withheld, was moved to another class as a disciplinary measure for bullying the victim. The victim’s family said th

Social Affairs July 14, 2023