Summer vacationers play in the water at Piagol valley on Mount Jiri, South Jeolla Province, Saturday, when the government raised its heat alert advisory to the highest level. /Yonhap



Typhoon approaches, likely to hits southern coast on Tuesday night



By Bahk Eun-ji



The government issued an alert Saturday as the nation became engulfed in a scorching heat wave that is likely to continue for some time.



The Ministry of the Interior and Safety raised its heat wave alert to "serious," the highest of the four-level advisory, as of 1 p.m. on the day.



It also activated the Central Disease and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, the control tower for large-scale natural or man-made disasters.



This is the first time the government has operated the emergency body to deal with a heat wave since they were classified as disasters along with floods, typhoons and earthquakes.



The ministry said it will work closely with other central government agencies and local authorities to minimize property damage and hazards to the health of vulnerable groups, such as the elderly living alone, and those in the low-income bracket.



Nevertheless, there have been a few heat-related deaths and accidents.



On Friday, an 86-year-old man was found dead on his farm in Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang Province, along with another 85-year-old man in a field in Goryeong in the same province, Saturday.



The rescue authorities suspect the two died from heatstroke while farming.



The extreme heat also delayed KTX train operations as some tracks near Cheonan-Asan Station on the Seoul-Busan route expanded Saturday afternoon, according to Korail.



Nearly 50 trains were delayed for between 10 minutes to 70 minutes, as the train operators worked to lower the temperature of the tracks.





People flock to Haeundae Beach in Busan, Sunday. Yonhap