Gwangju Seobu Fire Station Deploys 119 Citizen Lifeguard Team for Summer Season

Gwangju Seobu Fire Station announced on the 21st that it will deploy the '119 Citizen Water Rescue Team' in the middle and lower reaches of Gwangjucheon within Seo-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City until the end of August.

The 119 Citizen Water Rescue Team is planned to operate with a total of 32 members, including 12 firefighting officers and 20 volunteer firefighters.

They are responsible for safety guidance, managing control lines in hazardous areas, promoting water play safety, and typhoon safety measures. They also remove risk factors that threaten the safety of water play visitors and provide accident prevention education such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of automated external defibrillators.

According to the Fire Agency, from 2017 to 2021, a total of 147 people died in water play accidents over five years. The causes of accidents included lack of swimming skills (31%), safety negligence (29%), and swimming under the influence of alcohol (17%).

Summer water play safety rules include ▲warm-up exercises before water play ▲wetting the body starting from parts farthest from the heart before entering the water ▲wearing safety gear such as life jackets ▲and refraining from reckless behavior.

A fire official expressed gratitude for the noble spirit of the 119 Citizen Water Rescue Team members who serve for the safety of citizens, and urged special caution when playing in valleys or collecting shellfish such as freshwater snails during June, as localized heavy rains occur due to the influence of the monsoon front.

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