Anchor: Monsoon rains are expected to hit the entire nation next week, only the seventh such forecast in 50 years. As the seasonal downpour is showcasing a more diverse range of patterns alongside stronger precipitation, experts are calling for thorough preparation.
Kim Soyon has more.

Report:  A stationary front currently positioned over waters north of Taiwan is forecast to move northward toward the Korean Peninsula this weekend.

According to the Korea Meteorological Administration(KMA) on Friday, the front will bring showers across the country, kicking off the summer monsoon period.

It is only the seventh time in the past 50 years of observations by the agency that monsoons will affect the entire country concurrently.

Normally, the rainy season begins on the southern resort island of Jeju and moves toward the peninsula about an average six days later. This has prompted concern about the lack of time to take necessary precautions. 

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo held a meeting at the KMA’s National Meteorological Satellite Center on Friday to check up on the emergency alert system that sends out text messages on heat waves, flash floods, typhoons and other severe weather.

Han called on the agency to be meticulous in its duty to properly warn the public of any potential rain and heat-related disasters.

According to the KMA, torrential downpours have increased in frequency one and a half times compared to the past, likely due to a rise in the temperature of the ocean's surface.
 
In the past 55 years, the surface temperatures of the East and West Seas around the Korean Peninsula rose by more than one degree Celsius, over two times faster than the global average.
Kim Soyon, KBS World Radio News.