Gwangju Seo-gu Council Conducts On-site Safety Inspection of Areas Vulnerable to Heavy Rainfall

Published 17 Aug.2022 17:10(KST)

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Shin Dong-ho] The Seo-gu Council of Gwangju Metropolitan City (Chairperson Ko Kyung-ae) announced on the 17th that it conducted safety inspections by visiting three sites vulnerable to heavy rain, including Yuchon Drainage Pump Station, Deokheung Drainage Gate, and Byeokjin Drainage Gate.

Following recent casualties caused by heavy rain in the metropolitan area and central inland regions, on-site inspections focused on urgent safety measures and disaster response plans to prevent similar damage.

In particular, taking the case of flooding in the Seochang-dong area caused by the Yeongsan River overflowing due to over 500mm of heavy rain around this time two years ago as a lesson, Seo-gu council members showed overwhelming interest in the ‘Smart Flood Management System’ established in the first half of this year.

This aligns with President Yoon Seok-yeol’s recent announcement of the ‘Introduction of AI-based Flood Forecasting System,’ which will store real-time acquired river information in a database to be used as basic data for river flood management prediction and analysis.

Gwangju City established a ‘Smart Flood Management System’ in the first half of this year that integrates the latest Internet of Things technology to enable remote control during emergency river situations such as heavy rain and typhoons. Even during normal times, the system allows real-time monitoring of river conditions through CCTV and water level gauges, receiving evaluations for significantly improving river management operations.

Chairperson Ko Kyung-ae said, “As abnormal climate phenomena occur frequently worldwide recently, there are clear limitations in disaster response with existing disaster prevention systems,” and added, “To protect the precious lives and property of Seo-gu residents, the Seo-gu Council and Seo-gu Office will closely cooperate to proactively respond to unpredictable natural disasters.”