Three People Including Police Officer Kim Taeseop Who Saved Citizens During Typhoon Awarded 'LG Hero Award'

(From left) Police Corporal Kim Taeseop, Jin Changhoon, Nam Hyunbong

[Asia Economy Reporter Dongwoo Lee] LG Welfare Foundation announced on the 4th that it awarded the ‘LG Hero Award’ to Sergeant Kim Taeseop (32), Jin Changhoon (47), and Nam Hyunbong (38), who saved citizens who fell into the sea under the influence of a typhoon, a student clinging to an apartment window frame to escape flames, and a citizen at risk of drowning after a rubber boat capsized.

Sergeant Kim of the Forensic Investigation Division at Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency discovered two tourists entering the sea on tubes at Jungmun Saekdal Beach in Jeju Island on the 1st of last month during his honeymoon trip. Shortly after, Kim’s wife noticed one of the men being swept away by high waves and informed him.

At the time, Jeju Island was under the influence of Typhoon Maysak, with strong winds and rough waves. Without hesitation, Sergeant Kim grabbed his snorkeling gear and fins and jumped into the sea, barely rescuing the unconscious man and bringing him to shore. Thanks to Kim’s swift rescue, the man received emergency treatment from rescue workers who arrived on the scene, regained consciousness, and was transferred to a hospital for further care.

Kim said, “Since I am in charge of underwater forensic investigation to find evidence in underwater accidents, I had regular training and jumped into the sea without a second thought, but the high waves and the unconscious tourist made it a difficult situation.”

On August 29th at dawn, Jin Changhoon heard urgent screams of “Help me” while heading to work from his apartment in Jung-gu, Ulsan. Jin discovered a student clinging to a window frame on the 6th floor, barely holding on to escape the flames and smoke from a fire.

Having worked as a ladder truck driver for 10 years, Jin immediately drove his ladder truck, parked behind the apartment, and raised the ladder platform to the 6th-floor window, successfully rescuing the student. Thinking there might be more neighbors to save, he waited with the ladder truck until rescue workers arrived before leaving the scene.

On August 18th, Nam Hyunbong, working near Okdol Beach in Okdo-myeon, Gunsan City, heard urgent cries for help and rushed to the scene. Seeing a tourist whose rubber boat had capsized while playing in the water, Nam immediately jumped into the sea, swam about 100 meters, and rescued the man who was on the verge of drowning.

An LG official stated, “This is to encourage the courageous actions of heroes who did not pass by neighbors in danger and saved citizens.”

The ‘LG Hero Award’ was established in 2015 reflecting the late Chairman Koo Bon-moo’s will that “the company repays its social responsibility to heroes who sacrificed themselves for the nation and social justice.” Since CEO Koo Kwang-mo’s inauguration, the scope of recipients has expanded to include citizens who have performed exemplary acts and volunteer work in our society, with a total of 136 LG Hero Award recipients to date.

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