▲ People holding umbrellas walk across a crosswalk in central Seoul on July 23, 2023, as a heavy rain watch has been issued for the capital city. (Yonhap)

(LEAD) weather-heavy rain

(LEAD) Monsoon rains to soak entire nation until Monday

(ATTN: CHANGES headline, lead; UPDATES throughout with this week's forecast; CHANGES photo)

SEOUL, July 23 (Yonhap) -- Monsoon rains are forecast to hit most regions of South Korea until Monday, and continue to fall in the Seoul metropolitan region and the central part of the country this week, the state weather agency said Sunday.

A heavy rain watch has been issued in the wider capital area, the northwestern part of Gangwon Province, South and North Chungcheong provinces, and the western coast of South and North Jeolla provinces, as rain clouds are slowly moving eastward to cover the entire nation, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).

This week's downpours are expected to continue in the Seoul metropolitan region and the western parts of Gangwon through Wednesday, although rainfall will likely become lighter from Tuesday as the intensity of clashes between cold and warm air masses becomes weaker.

Until Tuesday, the broader capital region is forecast to see up to 80 millimeters of rain, with southern parts of Gyeonggi Province, surrounding Seoul, expected to get more than 120 mm of rain.

The central city of Daejeon and southern parts of South Chungcheong Province will see over 150 mm of rain, while Gwangju and South Jeolla Province are forecast to see 50 to 150 mm of rain, and over 200 mm in some areas, over the same period.

The KMA said the nation could see more rain even after Wednesday based on the strength and path of Typhoon Doksuri, which is currently moving west-northwestward from waters east of Manila.

On Saturday, the government raised its disaster readiness alert to level 2 from level 1 due to concerns of damage from heavy downpours.

Torrential rains have battered the country since early this month, causing floods and landslides, and a total of 47 people have been killed, while three remain missing.

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