Police Fully Mobilize Safety Management for New Year's Event After 3 Years

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] The police are making an all-out effort to ensure safety at New Year's events held for the first time in three years.

On the 29th, the National Police Agency announced that it will deploy about 10,000 personnel, including police officers, 78 riot squads, and the police special forces, to prepare for safety at 354 events held nationwide to welcome the New Year.

The reason the police are mobilizing about 10,000 personnel is that with the lifting of social distancing measures due to COVID-19, New Year's events are being held across the country for the first time in three years. Most events have organizers, but places like Gwangalli Beach in Busan, Waemok Village in Dangjin, Chungnam, and Homigot in Pohang, Gyeongbuk, are expected to attract large crowds despite having no official organizers. Accordingly, the police stated that regardless of the presence of organizers, they have collaborated with local governments to hold regional safety committees and establish safety management plans.

For the Bosingak Bell-Ringing Ceremony in Seoul, expected to attract about 100,000 people, four electronic billboard vehicles will be installed at the four directions of Jonggak Station intersection so that the bell-ringing event can be viewed from a distance. Additionally, the police chief will oversee safety management from the on-site command vehicle located at the center of the event. Furthermore, an intelligent CCTV system that measures crowd density in real time will be installed at five major alleyways to monitor the situation continuously, issue immediate alerts, and share information with related agencies such as the police and fire departments. This 'Smart Crowd Management System' will be introduced and operated for the first time.

A police official said, "Citizens planning to visit New Year's landmarks should check the surrounding area's traffic control times, passage routes, and hazardous locations in advance," and added, "We hope everyone will actively cooperate with the police's order maintenance guidance and control."

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