Elderly in Nowon-gu Prefer Hotel Stays During Heatwave Warnings?

Operation of 'Heatwave Shelters' at 245 Senior Centers, 19 Community Service Centers, and 11 Welfare Centers until September 30... Establishment of 'Night Heatwave Shelters' with 50 Hotel Rooms during Heatwave Alerts to Provide Comfortable and Cool Resting Places for Seniors

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Nowon-gu (District Mayor Oh Seung-rok) will operate 'Heatwave Shelters' for elderly people vulnerable to heat until September 30.

The heatwave shelters are divided into general, extended, and nighttime shelters. The general shelters are available to any residents, including elderly people vulnerable to heat and their caregivers, operating a total of 275 locations: 19 community service centers, 11 welfare centers, and 245 senior citizen centers.

The operating hours for general shelters are from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays. However, senior citizen centers that were closed due to COVID-19 will reopen starting July 5 and will operate from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

When a heatwave warning is issued, 'extended shelters' and 'nighttime shelters' will be operated. Extended shelters utilize 19 community service centers and 3 welfare centers. On weekdays, they will operate extended hours until 9 p.m., and on weekends including holidays, community service centers will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and welfare centers from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The nighttime shelters rent hotel rooms and operate from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m. the next day. This is to support elderly people who cannot use air conditioning all night due to electricity cost concerns.

Nowon-gu has partnered with Noblesse Hotel to operate 50 rooms as safe accommodations, providing elderly people with cool and comfortable sleeping spaces. The principle is one room per person, but couples can share the same room.

The nighttime shelter is available to recipients of basic livelihood security and elderly people living alone aged 65 or older. Applications can be submitted at the resident’s local community service center. The nighttime shelter will operate from late July to late August, when heatwave warnings are most frequent. If the hotel rooms exceed capacity, additional shelters will be set up in the district office auditorium.

During the 13 days of heatwave warnings from August 17 to September 1 last year, the nighttime shelters served a total of 143 people, including 70 basic livelihood security recipients, 12 lower-income class individuals, and 61 vulnerable elderly living alone. Due to high satisfaction after use, the number of elderly people visiting nighttime shelters is expected to continue increasing this year.

Meanwhile, the district will also strengthen welfare checks for elderly people vulnerable to heat. Using the Internet of Things (IoT), the temperature and humidity of target households will be monitored, and in cases of high temperature and humidity, active guidance to evacuate to heatwave shelters will be provided. Additionally, during heatwave warnings, welfare checks will be conducted by phone every other day, and if calls are not answered, home visits will be made to ensure the safety of elderly residents.

To prevent COVID-19, shelter capacity will be limited according to social distancing levels, and quarantine measures will be further strengthened. The district plans to strictly adhere to quarantine rules such as mask-wearing, temperature checks, and maintaining user logs.

District Mayor Oh Seung-rok said, "I hope the heatwave shelters will provide a comfortable resting space for elderly people exhausted by the heatwave," and added, "We will spare no effort to support residents so they can have a safe and healthy summer."

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