Heat wave continues nationwide

A brutal heatwave is gripping South Korea.

The daytime temperature is expected to reach up to 37 degrees in some parts of the country today, with dozens of people heading to the emergency room on Wednesday due to heat-related illnesses.

Meanwhile, amid the scorching temperatures in Europe,.. the European Commission is calling on the EU to target a 90 percent cut in emissions by 2040.

Lee Seung-jae has more.

Heat wave warnings will be in effect in most parts of South Korea on Thursday.

According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, the morning lows will range between 23 to 28 degrees Celsius, while the daytime mercury readings will reach 30 to 37 degrees.

The highest perceived temperature will rise to above 33 degrees in most parts of the country, due to the high humidity.

And with the country already feeling the effects of the heat, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on Wednesday reported that 51 people visited emergency rooms nationwide, due to heat-related illnesses.

Since the agency launched a heat-related illness monitoring system on May 15th, the total cumulative number of illnesses reported nationwide reached 524 as of Wednesday.

Europe is also experiencing scorching temperatures, with the heat wave in France having claimed the lives of three people so far.

With daytime highs exceeding 40 degrees in some parts of France, a homeless person in his 50s was found dead in eastern France, while a civil engineer worker collapsed and died in the same region.

A 10-year-old American tourist also collapsed and died during her trip to the gardens of the Palace of Versailles, with local police saying high temperatures could have been the cause of the death.

With the current heat wave in Europe, Pope Leo XIV has warned of the dangers of climate change.

In a letter released on Wednesday, the pope said that the "extreme natural events caused by man-made climate change are increasing in intensity and frequency," adding that in various parts of the world, the planet "is in a state of decay."

Meanwhile,.. the European Commission is proposing a change to its climate law, that calls on the European Union to slash its emissions by 90 percent by 2040.

The announcement of the legally binding target had been delayed by months after pushback from member states, who argued that the 90-percent target is too ambitious.

Lee Seung-jae, Arirang News.