[News Today] RECORD TROPICAL NIGHT STREAK

[LEAD]
Amid a record-breaking nationwide heatwave, Gangneung in Gangwondo Province has seen 17 straight tropical nights. This ties with the record set back in 2013. As temperatures stay high even at night, vacationers are flocking to the relatively cooler mountains and beaches.


[REPORT]
The beach is lit up and packed with people even at night.

People dip their feet in the sea and feel the cool breeze to chase away the stifling midday heat.

Some lie on the beach to sleep, while others build sandcastles they couldn't make during the day.

Kim Ga-yeong/ Yeoju resident
It was too hot during the day. In the evening, it's still humid, but the sea breeze helps.

Vehicles fill this parking lot at Daegwallyeong located over 800 meters above sea level.

These people came up to the mountain where temperatures drop to around 20 degrees Celsius to escape from the midday heat wave and tropical night.

Lee Hee-gyeong/ Gangneung resident
It was too hot to stay in Gangneung, so I came to Seonjaryeong. It's so nice here.

Tropical nights, when nighttime temperature hovers above 25 degrees Celsius, has never occurred in Daegwallyeong.

Meanwhile, the city of Gangneung recorded 25 degrees at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, marking 17 straight days of tropical nights.

This is the longest tropical night streak in history, exceeding the 16-day run recorded in 2013.

Kim Mi-yeong/ Gangneung resident
It's so cool here that I don't want to return to Gangneung. There's no tropical night in Daegwallyeong, and the air is cool.

The Korea Meteorological Administration has warned that prolonged tropical nights and heatwaves pose risks of heat-related illnesses, urging people to take extra precautions.