Heat-related death toll rises to 19 amid extreme heat wave in South Korea
A total of 19 people have died from heat-related illnesses in South Korea so far this year as the country endured severe heat waves, health authorities said Sunday, Azernews reports, citing Yonhap.
More than 3,100 patients had visited emergency rooms for heat-related conditions as of Wednesday since mid-May, when authorities launched the heat-related illness surveillance system, and 19 have died, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
Compared with the same period last year, the number of patients and deaths have more than doubled, it added.
Among the patients reported this year, heat exhaustion, commonly known as sunstroke, accounted for 61.3 percent, followed by heat stroke at 16.2 percent and heat cramps at 12.8 percent.
By age group, those aged 65 and older accounted for 31.9 percent of the total patients, the KDCA said.
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