"Prevention of Crowd Accidents" ... Yongin City Strengthens Safety Review for Large-Scale Events

Events and festivals with over 5,000 attendees change from written to in-person approval
Joint inspections by police and fire departments conducted before events

Yongin City in Gyeonggi Province has strengthened its pre-safety inspection standards for large-scale events. This measure aims to prevent the recurrence of accidents caused by crowd congestion, such as the Itaewon tragedy in Seoul last year.

On the 18th, Yongin City announced that to prevent unexpected accidents at events with large gatherings, the review of safety management for various festivals and events will be conducted face-to-face by the 'Yongin City Safety Policy Working Coordination Committee.' The face-to-face review applies to local festivals or event venues where a maximum instantaneous crowd of 5,000 or more is expected.

Until now, the city has conducted written reviews on safety management for events with a maximum instantaneous attendance of 1,000 or more and events using fire or explosive gases in mountains or lakes. So far this year, the number of cases reviewed is 34.

However, going forward, for events with 5,000 or more attendees, the city will hold the 'Safety Policy Working Coordination Committee' chaired by the Second Deputy Mayor, requiring event organizers to directly explain safety measures in person. The review will examine the appropriateness of the event plan and auxiliary events, whether an organization capable of implementing comprehensive safety management measures is properly formed, and whether disaster-causing factors have been improved, among other overall safety plan considerations.

The review will include police, fire departments, Korea Electric and Gas Safety Corporation, city citizen safety officers, and construction department officials from each district office, who will engage in in-depth discussions on safety accident prevention measures for large crowds.

In particular, before the event, the committee, led by the Second Deputy Mayor, will conduct joint on-site inspections with related agencies such as the police and fire departments to directly verify whether the matters discussed during the face-to-face review have been properly reflected.

A city official stated, "For events expected to gather many citizens, we will prioritize safety and do our best to ensure optimal safety management is maintained."

Meanwhile, the city has a 'Safety Management Committee' under the 'Ordinance on the Operation of the Safety Management Committee,' which deliberates and coordinates policies and tasks related to safety management. Additionally, the city operates the 'Safety Policy Working Coordination Committee,' which reviews agenda items in advance and consults with related agencies to decide on proposals to be submitted to the Safety Management Committee meetings.

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