Seoul City Deploys '119 Rapid Response Teams' at 25 Vaccination Centers

Deployment of 119 Paramedics and Ambulances at 25 Locations Including Seongdong Vaccination Center in April

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters will deploy and operate the ‘119 Rapid Response Team’ at a total of 25 vaccination centers, starting with the Seongdong Vaccination Center.

On the 1st, the Fire and Disaster Headquarters announced that the ‘119 Rapid Response Team’ will be deployed at seven local vaccination centers including Seongdong, Nowon, Seongbuk, Jungnang, Eunpyeong, Dongjak, and Songpa, as well as 18 district vaccination centers to be established in the future.

The 119 Rapid Response Team consists of qualified firefighters such as nurses and ambulances, supporting tasks such as emergency treatment and transport in case of adverse reactions during vaccination. The scale of deployed firefighting resources includes 75 personnel and 25 vehicles.

Support for firefighting resources at Seoul’s vaccination centers is the second after the Central Vaccination Center, decided to establish a safe and rapid vaccination system as the vaccination target expanded to seniors aged 75 and older.

The Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters will mobilize its staff and reserve ambulances and, through consultation with the National Fire Agency, will also receive support from 19 reserve ambulances from other local governments. The ambulances provided by other city and provincial fire headquarters include 8 from Gyeongbuk, 5 from Incheon, and one each from Chungnam, Jeonnam, Gyeongnam, Busan, Ulsan, and Jeju.

A representative from the Fire and Disaster Headquarters explained, “So far, firefighting support centered on the National Fire Agency has been provided according to the situation of each city and province to respond to COVID-19,” adding, “We will cooperate to ensure that vaccination for the elderly proceeds without issues and will thoroughly perform emergency treatment, transport, and counseling for patients who may experience adverse reactions after vaccination.”

Meanwhile, as of March 30, 113 patients were transported by 119 ambulances due to adverse reactions to vaccination in Seoul, and 183 citizens received counseling about abnormal symptoms through the Ambulance Situation Management Center.

Choi Tae-young, head of the Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters, said, “Considering the importance of COVID-19 vaccination for the elderly, we have deployed the 119 Rapid Response Team,” and added, “Based on this, we will do our best to support rapid and safe vaccination.”

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