South Korean president says heatwave 'a national disaster' as 16 die

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung called on his cabinet to treat the heatwave gripping his country as a "national disaster" as he announces the deaths of 16 people on Tuesday.

Speaking at a cabinet meeting, Lee called on officials to take necessary measures to protect the daily lives of people and inspect power systems as demand for air conditioning surges. The nation's weather agency said Yangsan, a southeastern inland city, recorded a ​temperature of ​42.5 degrees Celsius on Sunday, the highest temperature measured ​in 122 years of weather ​observations.

The Korea Meteorological Administration also issued it’s first-ever heatwave warning for parts of Seoul and neighbouring Gyeonggi on Monday, extending this to all of the capital on Tuesday.