Reasons for Severe Damage from Uljin Wildfire... Record Low Winter Precipitation, 3 Weeks of Dry Weather Warnings, and Strong Winds

No Rain Expected Before the 13th
Complete Dissipation Likely Difficult

On the 5th, Gyeonggi-do firefighters deployed to the wildfire site in Donghae City are conducting extinguishing operations.

The extensive wildfire damage along the East Coast, including Uljin and Samcheok, was caused by a combination of historically low rainfall, dry air, and strong winds. With no rain forecasted until the 13th, complete extinguishment is expected to be difficult.

Factors that complicate wildfire suppression include wind, humidity, and precipitation. Since the 15th of last month, a dry weather advisory has been in effect for about three weeks in the fire-affected areas such as Uljin and Samcheok. As of 5 a.m. on the 7th, a dry warning is in effect for Uljin, Gangwon’s Samcheok, Gangneung, and Donghae cities, while a dry advisory is in place for Yeongwol County.

On the 5th, when the fire broke out, the maximum instantaneous wind speed reached 14 m/s in Uljin and 19.4 m/s in Gangneung, causing the flames to spread rapidly. Although the wind has weakened, the dry atmosphere and lack of rainfall are expected to make fire suppression difficult.

A Korea Meteorological Administration official explained, "In spring, the temperature difference is large and winds blow more than usual, creating conditions where even a small spark can easily spread. We expect the challenging situation for fire suppression to continue until rain falls on the 13th."

This winter’s precipitation was the lowest on record. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, the winter precipitation from December last year to February this year was 13.3 mm, the lowest since observations began in 1973. This winter’s precipitation was only 14.7% of the average, 75.7 mm less. Compared to last winter’s precipitation (47.8 mm), it was about one-third.

The number of precipitation days was also the lowest ever at 11.7 days. This is 7.8 days fewer than the average (19.5 days) and 6.5 days fewer than last winter’s precipitation days (18.2 days). Many regions also broke their records for lowest winter precipitation. Yeongwol (8.5 mm), Daegwallyeong (9.9 mm), and Cheongju (7.5 mm) recorded the lowest precipitation ever, while Uljin (24.5 mm), Paju (15.6 mm), and Chungju (11.9 mm) recorded the second-lowest.

Additionally, the Korean Peninsula was frequently influenced by high pressure systems this winter, resulting in the highest sunshine duration on record. Although continental high pressure passing over the sea created snow cloud bands causing frequent snowfall in some central and western regions, the amount was small. Low-pressure systems passing near Korea in winter did not receive support from upper-level atmospheric troughs, preventing them from advancing into Korea and resulting in low amounts of rain and snow.

In particular, precipitation in the Seoul metropolitan area was 17.9 mm, 27.0% of the average, and in Busan, Ulsan, and Gyeongnam, it was only 3.1 mm, about 3% of the average.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.