Icicles are seen near the Han River as the temperature fall in Seoul, Dec. 23. Yonhap

Subzero temperatures, bolstered by strong winds, gripped the country Tuesday, with the cold wave expected to continue through the Christmas holiday.

Morning temperatures were forecast to hover around minus 10 degress Celsius in the central inlands and mountainous regions of Gangwon Province, as well as the inlands of North Gyeongsang Province, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration.

Other regions were also expected to record subzero temperatures, excluding the coastal areas.

Strong gusts could lower apparent temperatures by 3 to 5 degrees.

As of 8 a.m., the temperature in Seoul was minus 4.1 degrees, in Incheon minus 2.8 degrees , in Gwangju and Daegu 0.7 degrees, and in Busan 2.3 degrees.

The daily highs were forecast to range from 0 to 10 degrees.

The cold weather will continue until Christmas morning, before temperatures begin to rise later in the day to levels similar to or slightly higher than the average year by Thursday morning.

The nation is unlikely to see a white Christmas this year, although less than 0.1 centimeter of snow may fall in the greater Seoul region and parts of the Gangwon and Chungcheong provinces at night on Christmas Day. (Yonhap)