Hong Kong and Taiwan Close Businesses and Schools Following Typhoon Warnings: "We Need to Establish a Proper System Too"

Hong Kong, Step-by-Step Commuting and School Attendance Guidelines
Taiwan, Establishes Legal Standards for Disaster-Related Business and School Closures

Amid significant human and property damage caused by recent heavy rains and typhoons, heavy rain is forecast nationwide this week, mainly in the central region. As damage from natural disasters continues to increase, there is a growing call to expand systems and institutions for public safety. Similar to places frequently affected by typhoons such as Hong Kong and Taiwan, where commuting and school attendance are systematically restricted according to warnings, it is pointed out that specific measures should be established to more actively protect the safety of all citizens in Korea.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, when Typhoon Khanun was forecast to pass through the Korean Peninsula on the 10th, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) recommended that administrative agencies at all levels adjust commuting hours. The Ministry of Education also guided metropolitan and provincial offices of education to consider temporary school closures or switching to remote classes for schools that had started the semester to ensure student safety. However, most companies and schools operated normally. Only a few companies adjusted commuting hours, and schools only changed academic schedules or teaching methods. At that time, on social networking service X (formerly Twitter), terms like ‘normal school attendance’ and ‘K office workers’ trended. Kim (28), who works in Seoul, said, “The work-from-home recommendation was not communicated to all company members but only to team leaders,” adding, “Some teams worked from home, but others had to commute.”

Unlike us, overseas countries operate systematic systems to prevent damage caused by citizens going out during disasters such as typhoons. Hong Kong’s typhoon warning system is divided into stages T1 to T10. The T1 stage means the typhoon’s center is within 800 km of Hong Kong and may have an impact. At T3, strong winds of 41?62 km/h near sea level blow, and gusts may exceed 110 km/h. At T8, winds of 63?117 km/h near sea level can occur, with gusts possibly exceeding 180 km/h. T9 indicates gusts and strong winds increase to a noticeable intensity. T10 corresponds to hurricane-level winds, with sustained winds of 118 km/h or gusts exceeding 220 km/h.

The Hong Kong Observatory issues a Pre-T8 warning to the general public if there is a possibility of a T8 warning within two hours. This allows employers to stagger workers’ dismissal times, ensuring the safety of workers who require long travel times or face transportation difficulties, and to disperse public transportation demand. Employers may operate essential personnel during disasters, but those personnel must be notified in advance.

When a T8 warning is issued, workers are gradually sent home. Even if the T8 warning is lifted, people must remain in a safe place for two hours until the government announces otherwise. If workers are notified to return to work, they must arrive within two hours by 2 p.m., and if less than three hours remain until the end of the workday, they do not need to return. Schools also decide attendance systematically according to the warning system. At T3, kindergartens and special schools suspend attendance, and at T8, all schools suspend attendance.

Due to the impact of Typhoon Khanun, heavy rain is falling, causing the water level of Cheonggyecheon Stream in Seoul to rise, submerging part of the walkway. Photo by Huh Younghan younghan@

Taiwan has laws regarding closures of workplaces and schools in case of natural disasters. For typhoons, commuting and school attendance are suspended if any one of three conditions is met. Specifically, ▲if weather forecasts predict the typhoon’s radius will pass through the area within four hours with average wind speeds of 13.9?17.1 m/s or higher, or gusts of 24.5?28.4 m/s or higher; ▲if weather forecasts or actual observations indicate rainfall reaches thresholds that cause or may cause disasters leading to suspension of commuting and school attendance; ▲or if wind or rainfall does not meet suspension criteria but terrain and rainfall cause disruptions in transportation, water, or electricity supply, affecting commuting and school attendance and posing disaster risks.

Notably, announcements for full-day or morning suspensions of commuting and school attendance must be made between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. the previous day and broadcast before 11 p.m., with media notified accordingly. If no announcement is made the previous day but criteria are met after midnight, announcements must be made before 4:30 a.m. and broadcast before 5 a.m. For suspensions of afternoon or night work and classes, announcements must be made before 10:30 a.m. and broadcast before 11 a.m. on the same day.

Korea also has related regulations. According to the Framework Act on the Management of Disasters and Safety, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety establishes the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters to respond to and recover from large-scale disasters, while regional disaster safety headquarters oversee disaster management within their jurisdictions. The heads of regional disaster safety headquarters are provincial governors or city mayors, county governors, or district heads, who may convene meetings and request administrative, financial, or other necessary cooperation by presidential decree. This includes orders for workplace closures or school suspensions.

However, experts point out that most measures remain at the recommendation level and lack concrete response systems tailored to situations. Moon Hyun-cheol, Vice President of the Korean Disaster Management Association, said, “Local governments can discuss and take measures, but the problem is that these are not properly implemented,” adding, “Since disaster occurrence varies by region, it is most practical and effective for local disaster safety headquarters to adjust commuting hours based on their judgment.” There are also calls for detailed guidelines by disaster stages. Professor Baek Seung-ju of the Department of Fire and Disaster Prevention at Open Cyber University suggested, “We need to quantify and numerically define the severity of disasters in Korea to create a ‘switch’ that allows citizens to make clear judgments,” adding, “It is time to have specialized manuals rather than standard manuals.”

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