Snow blankets Osan Air Base, South Korea, on Feb. 7, 2025. (Eric Mendiola/Stars and Stripes)
OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea — U.S. military bases in South Korea are expected to resume normal operations over the weekend after a winter storm blanketed the area with about 3 inches of snow, leading to school closures, limited base services and hazardous road conditions.
Most of the snowfall began Thursday night and ended by Friday morning. The Korea Meteorological Administration had issued a cold wave warning throughout the week, advising residents to avoid outdoor activities.
Forecasts for the weekend in Pyeongtaek, home of Osan and Camp Humphreys, the largest U.S. military base overseas, called for partly sunny skies and temperatures ranging between 26 and 30 degrees Fahrenheit.
The storm prompted Defense Department schools on both bases to close Friday. Medical appointments at Humphreys were canceled, though emergency departments remained open. Osan’s clinics stayed open but operated with “limited support services,” according to the 51st Medical Group’s Facebook page.
Snow blankets Osan Air Base, South Korea, on Feb. 7, 2025. (Eric Mendiola/Stars and Stripes)
Other base services were affected as well. Humphreys’ child development centers opened late for the children of mission-essential personnel only, while Osan’s operated as normal. Fitness centers at Humphreys remained open, but Osan’s gym was closed. Commissaries and post offices at both bases stayed open.
Road conditions were a primary concern as snow accumulated. Both installations initially declared road conditions “red,” advising military vehicles to use snow chains and warning drivers to exercise extreme caution. At Osan, conditions improved by midday Friday, and the status was downgraded to “amber,” one level below red.
The bases implemented similar restrictions on Jan. 28, when a separate storm was forecast to bring up to 8 inches of snow.
Farther south, Kunsan Air Base, home of the 8th Fighter Wing, set its road status to red Friday morning before escalating it to black in the afternoon, prohibiting nearly all military vehicle travel. The base also suspended the use of scooters, bicycles and motorcycles and restricted buses and taxis to essential trips.
At U.S. Army Garrison Daegu, where about a half-inch of snow fell, no facilities were closed and no events were canceled, base spokesman Philip Molter said by email Friday.
