◀ Anchor ▶
Today was the vernal equinox, which signals the arrival of spring in earnest as day and night are of equal length.
As the cold spell raged, the perceived temperature dropped to below zero, and heavy snow fell on the east coast of Gangwon-do.
Especially during rush hours, hundreds of vehicles became stranded as the attention was focused on the area.
Reporter Bae Yeon-hwan will report.
◀ Report ▶
A large trailer is stranded on a road with close to 20cm of snow.
In the Wondeok-Imwon section of Samcheok-si, which is famous for its long uphill road, the snow suddenly became heavier in the early morning and people have been unable to move for six hours.
The driver grabs a shovel and diligently tries to clear away the snow around the wheels, but it’s not enough.
[이대곤/트레일러 운전자]
“It’s 5 a.m. It started rolling even before I got over the hill and it’s still like this.”
Even snow removal trucks cannot reach due to traffic jams, so drivers have no choice but to wait in their cars.
[박성대/차량 운전자]
“Because of the snow, I can’t even see the bids and I’m stranded. I’ve been sitting here like this for three hours. My car is also stuck and I can’t move forward…”
Due to the sudden heavy snowfall, snow removal work was not carried out on time, leaving dozens of large vehicles stranded on the road and stranded for more than five to six hours.
In downtown Gangneung, hundreds of cars commuting to work were stuck on roads that had not been cleared of snow.
Contrary to the Korea Meteorological Administration’s forecast that snow would fall only on the northern east coast of Gangwon, heavy snowfall was concentrated on the southern east coast, and local governments belatedly began snow removal work.
[박유정/강원지방기상청 예보관]
“As the cold air from the upper level came down stronger than expected, a convergence zone was formed along the east coast of south-central Gangwon, which caused more snow to fall on the southern east coast.”
More than 20 centimeters of spring snow fell in Yongsan and Daegwallyeong in Pyeongchang and Wangsan in Gangneung, and close to 20 centimeters of snow fell on coastal areas where snow rarely accumulates due to relatively high temperatures.
There is news of snow and rain in the mountains of Gangwon and the east coast until the day after tomorrow, but rather than heavy snow, small amounts of around 1cm are expected to fall.
This is Bae Yeon-hwan from MBC News.
Video coverage: Gwangwoo Bae (Yeongdong, Gangwon)
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