Thousands swarm airport in South Korea and five die in Japan as snow and ice cause chaos in east Asia
Thousands of travellers have swarmed an airport in South Korea trying to leave a holiday island after hundreds of flights were cancelled by cold weather gripping east Asia.
At least five people were reported to have died in Japan, with dozens injured as heavy snow and record cold temperatures brought widespread disruption.
On South Korea's Jeju island on Wednesday, the airport was inundated as passengers who had been escaping for the Lunar New Year celebrations tried to get home.
Hundreds of flights in and out of Jeju were grounded because of strong winds and snow, stranding an estimated 40,000 travellers.
The island had seen more than 19cm (7.5ins) of snow since Tuesday morning, while another island in the country's east reported 70cm (27.5ins).
In Japan, one man was killed by a falling tree, officials said, and two deaths in the northern prefecture of Niigata were being investigated in connection with the cold weather.
Two other people were found without vital signs in Okayama, western Japan, with a member of the government saying the deaths could be linked to accidents while removing snow.
In Kyoto prefecture in western Japan, more than 30 injuries, mostly by falling, were reported.
Thousands of people using trains in Kyoto and Shiga prefectures were forced to stay overnight in carriages or stations, and 13 were taken to hospitals.
Vehicles on major roads across the country were left stranded and hundreds of other flights cancelled.
Check the weather forecast where you are
Rescuers braved wind-whipped waters to continue the search for 22 crew members after a 6,551-ton cargo ship sank in the early hours of Wednesday, around 93 miles (150km) south of Jeju island.
The Japanese coast guard said the water in the area remained rough with a temperature of 14C (57F).
Heavy snow is expected to reach greater Seoul from late Wednesday to Thursday afternoon, according to the Safety Ministry.
Nearly 7,000 cold-weather shelters will be open across Gyeonggi province, which surrounds Seoul, officials said, and several thousand tons of snow-clearing chemicals would be used to improve the safety of roads that may turn icy.
Cold weather warnings were also issued in North Korea.
Temperatures in Pyongyang were forecast to dip to minus -19C (-2.2F) on Wednesday morning. Authorities reportedly called for "thorough measures" to prevent economic damage.
Record low temperatures in China
Chaos in Japan and South Korea follows temperatures dropping to their lowest ever in parts of northern China, with -53C (-63F) recorded in one city.
State broadcaster CCTV said a weather station in Mohe, in Heilongjiang province, logged the record low on Sunday, breaking the city's previous record of -52C (-61F) in 1969.
Sky News meteorologist Joanna Robinson said that China's "intense cold surge" follows one of the worst heatwaves the country has experienced.
