▲ People walk with parasols on a street in eastern Seoul on Aug. 7, 2026, amid an extreme heat wave. (Yonhap)

(ATTN: UPDATES with heat wave warning details in last 2 paras)

SEOUL, Aug. 7 (Yonhap) -- Temperatures topped 40 C in Seoul and other parts of the country Friday, the state weather service said, underscoring the intensity of the ongoing extreme heat wave.

The mercury reached 40.2 C at an automatic weather station in Seoul's northern ward of Nowon at 3:28 p.m., according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).

It marked the first time the temperature exceeded 40 C in Seoul since Aug. 1, 2018, when the capital recorded 41.8 C.

The ongoing heat wave also pushed temperatures to above or near 40 C in other parts of the country, with Hanam's Deokpung district, just southeast of Seoul, reaching 40.7 C at 2:32 p.m.

In the city of Gwangyang, about 300 kilometers south of Seoul, the temperature soared to 40.2 C at 2:37 p.m., the KMA said. Temperatures rose to 39.8 C in the Gangwon Province county of Yeongweol and in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province.

The number of heat wave days, when daytime highs are 33 C or higher, averaged 14.8 days nationwide from June 1 to Thursday, the fourth highest for the same period since the weather observation network was expanded nationwide in 1973.

The number of tropical nights, defined as nights with minimum temperatures of 25 C or higher, reached a record 13 days.

The extreme heat wave is expected to ease slightly over the weekend, though sweltering conditions are expected to persist. On Saturday, morning lows will range from 21 C to 26 C nationwide, and daytime highs will range from 26 C to 35 C, the KMA said.

In light of the forecast, the KMA said it will replace serious heat wave warnings issued for Seoul and eastern and southwestern parts of the country with an ordinary warning at 6 p.m. Friday. The capital has been under the top-tier heat warning since Tuesday.

Under KMA guidelines, a serious heat wave warning is issued when apparent temperatures are projected to hit 38 C or higher, or when daily maximums reach 39 C or above, in areas where the highest perceived temperature is 35 C or higher for two or more consecutive days.

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