Seong Jang-hyun, Yongsan District Mayor, Leads 2021 Comprehensive Flood and Wind Disaster Countermeasures

Formation of Disaster Safety Countermeasures Headquarters for Flood and Wind Damage Preparedness... Deployment of Care Officers to Flood-Prone Households and Safety Inspections of Facilities Such as Retention Basins

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] “Please do not neglect even the smallest tasks and do your best to carry out flood and typhoon countermeasures to uphold the honor of Yongsan as the number one safety district.”

On the 26th, Yongsan District Mayor Seong Jang-hyun made this statement during the ‘2021 Comprehensive Flood and Typhoon Preparedness Drill’ held at the Yongsan Disaster Safety Countermeasures Headquarters.

Yongsan District (Mayor Seong Jang-hyun) is focusing its administrative efforts on flood and typhoon safety measures.

On the 15th, the district formed the Flood and Typhoon Preparedness Disaster Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (DSCH), led by the district mayor as the head. In case of an incident, 28 departments (institutions) and 13 task forces will respond with overall situation management, disaster publicity, administrative support, traffic measures, medical quarantine, and emergency recovery.

Emergency duty will be implemented in stages: caution (heavy rain advisory, typhoon advisory, strong wind advisory), alert (heavy rain warning, flood advisory, typhoon warning, strong wind warning), and severe (flood warning, multiple disaster victims). If necessary, on-site command posts will also be established and operated.

For 142 flood-vulnerable households in the area, care officials (142 personnel) have been assigned to provide one-on-one close management. For underground houses, water barriers, indoor backflow prevention devices, and submersible pumps are installed free of charge upon application from the building owners.

Additionally, to assist in case of damage caused by typhoons, floods, or strong winds, flood and typhoon insurance subscriptions are being promoted. The insurance providers include Dongbu Insurance, Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance, Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, among five companies. The subscription period ranges from 1 to 3 years, with the government subsidizing part of the premium (55% to 92%).

Since March, starting with three local retention basins and one rainwater storage tank, the district has continued inspections of disaster-vulnerable facilities (12 locations), large construction sites (3 locations), steep slopes (31 locations), road facilities (25 locations), rainwater pumping stations (13 locations), and traditional markets (4 locations).

The inspections focus on risk factors such as facility collapse during the rainy season and violations of related safety regulations.

Furthermore, the district has established a cooperative system with 11 organizations, including military units, the Korea Construction Equipment Association, and the Korea Thermal Management Construction Association, to enable rapid on-site recovery in emergencies.

Local weather information, water levels, rainfall, and shelter status can be checked through the ‘Yongsan District Smart Flood Control System.’ Information scattered across the Korea Meteorological Administration, Ministry of Environment, and others has been consolidated in one place.

Mayor Seong Jang-hyun of Yongsan District said, “Before the full rainy season begins, we ask each household to take measures such as cleaning drainage outlets. It is also prohibited to cover rainwater inlets in front of houses or shops or to throw trash into them.”

He added, “Sandbags placed in flood-prone areas are available for anyone to use. Equipment such as pumps and submersible pumps can be borrowed from the local community service centers when needed.”

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