S.Korean southern areas hit by heavy snowfall

South Korean southern regions suffered greatly from record snowfall that blanketed the regions recently, reported South Korean Yonhap News Agency.

Heavy damages were reported in most of South Korea's southern coastal regions where up to a meter of snow has fallen in the past two weeks.

So far, three deaths have been reported due to the snow storm, said Yonhap.

The local government in Gwangju, a major city in the South Jeolla Province, said about 40 centimeters of snow had fallen overnight in the region.

About 1,200 schools in the affected regions temporarily shut down, with some elementary schools starting their winter vacation earlier than scheduled, reported Yonhap.

Education officials in North Jeolla Province said 98 elementary schools will remain closed till Friday due to the heavy snow storm. Also 18 schools will commence their winter vacation earlier than expected.

The country's southern resort island of Jeju also reported extensive snow damage. Officials said up to 10,000 tourists were stranded on the island.

Many roads running across the island near Mount Halla remained off limits on Thursday.

Yonhap quoted government sources as saying the total property damage is tentatively at 220 billion won (216 million US dollars) as of Thursday afternoon.

During an inspection tour of the area on Wednesday, South Korean Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan promised to provide preferential government subsidies to assist in the rehabilitation work in the affected region.

Source: Xinhua