Incheon City and City Office of Education Conduct Comprehensive Survey on Children Not Using Care Facilities

On the 14th, elementary school siblings accidentally started a fire while trying to cook ramen at a villa in Michuhol-gu, Incheon. They sustained serious injuries and are receiving treatment at a hospital.
[Photo by Michuhol Fire Station, Incheon]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Incheon City and the Incheon Metropolitan Office of Education will conduct a comprehensive survey on the use of care facilities in relation to the recent fire accident involving elementary school brothers in Michuhol-gu.

According to the city on the 18th, they will first investigate, together with each district and county, how many students use care facilities such as local children's centers, and the scale of students who need protection from care facilities due to being in crisis situations or vulnerable groups but are not using them.

Through this, they plan to find ways to provide customized integrated services to children at risk of care neglect.

In particular, in case of recurrence of incidents like the Michuhol-gu brothers, an emergency response team linked with related institutions and organizations will be activated to ensure prompt support.

The Office of Education will also revitalize the operation of care services in kindergartens and elementary schools and strengthen support for vulnerable students in connection with the priority education welfare support project.

Additionally, beyond the current support for lunch expenses during remote classes for vulnerable students, they plan to provide continuous treatment and learning and emotional support in case of safety accidents involving vulnerable students.

Meanwhile, the city and the Office of Education have agreed to jointly respond with various social organizations such as the Green Children’s Foundation and the Community Chest of Korea to support the brothers involved in the Michuhol-gu fire accident.

The brothers, A (10) and B (8), living with their mother in Michuhol-gu, suffered severe burns after accidentally starting a fire while trying to cook ramen at home on the morning of the 14th and are currently receiving treatment at a hospital.

These brothers, who are in the 4th and 2nd grades of elementary school, have never used the care classroom since enrollment. Their mother, C (30), did not apply for the care classroom at the beginning of each semester, stating she would take care of the children herself.

During the remote classes held due to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the care classroom was operated, but the brothers only attended the daily remote classes.

Incheon Mayor Park Namchun said, "For now, we will focus on administrative measures that can be taken for the injured children," adding, "We will work to fill any gaps in the care system for children who cannot attend school due to COVID-19 and create a more detailed child welfare framework to ensure no child is left in a safety blind spot."

Incheon Superintendent of Education Do Seonghun also said, "It is heartbreaking that such an accident occurred while recognizing the need to establish an educational safety net and preparing for it," emphasizing, "We will once again review to ensure support for vulnerable students continues even during remote classes."

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