Disaster Alert Bomb: Information or Promotion?

Help with COVID-19 Confirmed Cases' Movement
Startled by Frequently Ringing Sirens
2,876 Messages Sent in March, Averaging 151 per Day
Some Local Governments Send Simple Information Only

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] "It's important information, so I do need it, but it gets a bit tiring because it rings all the time."

Mr. Lee (61), who lives in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, received five 'disaster alert' messages over seven hours from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the 19th. The messages included notifications about new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Suwon, messages sent from Yongin and Siheung cities, and warnings from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety about strong wind damage. While it is good to quickly learn about COVID-19 related news, the frequent alerts during work often cause sudden surprises. Mr. Lee said, "When the messages come, I check them first, and since they are safety-related information, I think they are helpful," but added, "When the siren sounds from messages arriving here and there, it can feel tiring."

As the COVID-19 situation enters a prolonged phase, the number of disaster alert messages has also increased. The central government and local governments actively use disaster alerts to quickly disclose information. The messages mainly consist of cases where confirmed patients have appeared in the area or the disclosure of confirmed patients' movement paths, and some include safety caution messages such as strong winds or mask distribution schedules.

According to the National Disaster Safety Portal on the 20th, the number of disaster alert messages sent by the government and local governments reached 2,876 from March 1 to 19. This means an average of 151 messages were sent nationwide per day, about 300 more than the 2,577 messages sent in February.

Disaster Alert Message.

Disaster alert messages are currently sent based on the recipient's location. Therefore, messages can be received from district offices of areas other than the recipient's residence. Since the messages are sent collectively through mobile carrier base stations, it is common to receive disaster alerts from other local governments depending on the transmission range. Mr. Song (31), who lives in Jongno-gu, Seoul, said, "I receive 4 to 5 messages a day from other districts like Yongsan-gu, Gwanak-gu, and Seongdong-gu," adding, "But I have never received a disaster alert from Jongno-gu Office." Each district office decides independently what messages to send. More proactive district offices tend to send more disaster alerts.

Citizens generally have a positive evaluation of disaster alert messages themselves. According to a survey on 'COVID-19 disaster alert messages' conducted by the job portal Career with 314 office workers, 98.1% of respondents said the messages were helpful. However, when asked if they ever felt tired of the disaster alerts, 63.4% answered "yes." Professor Lim Myung-ho of Dankook University's Department of Psychology analyzed, "Providing rapid information through messages is positive, but some people feel anxiety or fatigue due to unfamiliar situations." Experts commonly point out that acquiring too much information about negative issues such as diseases increases anxiety accordingly.

Meanwhile, there are criticisms that some local governments are using disaster alert messages as a kind of 'promotional tool.' Among the actual messages sent, many include seemingly trivial ones such as "No confirmed cases today," disinfection and quarantine notices for specific places, and simple preventive guideline messages. It is also common for local governments to resend messages already sent by the central government. In the earlier survey, office workers identified 'confirmed patients' movement path notifications' (48.7%) and 'COVID-19 status disclosure' (37.9%) as the disaster alerts that were actually helpful. Meanwhile, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety issued guidelines last month asking local governments nationwide to refrain from sending COVID-19 related disaster alerts late at night and to focus on sending messages tailored to local situations such as confirmed patients' movement paths.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.