Christmas and Year-End Safety Efforts in Myeongdong, Hongdae, Gangnam Station, and Seongsu-dong

Seoul Districts Including Jung-gu, Mapo-gu, Gangnam-gu, and Seongdong-gu Focus on Crowd Safety Management During Year-End and New Year Periods

As Christmas and the year-end holidays approach, safety issues have once again emerged as a pressing concern.

Seoul’s Jung-gu, Mapo-gu, Gangnam-gu, and Seongdong-gu districts are grappling with safety measures in areas expected to attract large crowds during Christmas and the year-end holidays.

Following the Itaewon tragedy, safety has become the foremost issue, prompting the Seoul Metropolitan Government to work closely with autonomous districts to fully prepare for safety measures.

Myeongdong Halloween Day Safety Measures Underway

Jung-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Kim Gil-seong) is taking thorough precautions including crowd data analysis, collaboration with related agencies, and strengthened on-site inspections. Based on last year’s time-based crowd analysis data around Myeongdong before and after Christmas and recent floating population trends, the district predicted crowd density during this year’s Christmas holiday period. The peak crowd is expected to exceed 82,000 people at 6 p.m. on the 24th, and to respond accordingly, 43 district office staff will be deployed daily on-site from the 23rd to the 25th.

In particular, eight locations where visitors are expected to gather more densely?such as around Lotte and Shinsegae Department Stores where Christmas LED sculptures are installed, the Myeongdong Cathedral area hosting the ‘2023 Myeongdong, Lighting Up Winter’ festival, Noon Square, Myeongdong Station, and the Central Post Office?will have 2 to 3 personnel permanently stationed to monitor crowd density, maintain order, and ensure safety measures. A hotline among workers will be established to share real-time on-site situations.

The district will also intensify monitoring of 37 intelligent CCTVs installed in Myeongdong before and after Christmas. Jung-gu’s Integrated Safety Center will share crowd density information with on-site staff, and from level 2 (crowd density of 4 people/㎡ or less), announcements will be broadcast via CCTV speakers.

At Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP), where the ‘Seoul Light DDP 2023 Winter’ and year-end countdown events will be held, CCTV monitoring and on-site patrols will be conducted from 9 p.m. on the 31st until 1 a.m. the next day to prepare for any possible accidents.

Mapo-gu (District Mayor Park Kang-su) will conduct special safety management for large crowds in the Hongdae Red Road area from the 20th to the 31st, anticipating heavy crowds ahead of the 2023 year-end and New Year holidays.

Based on last year’s ‘Seoul Real-Time Population Data,’ the district expects a maximum crowd of 80,000 to 90,000 people in the Hongdae Red Road area between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. on December 24th, and has established and is implementing safety management measures for the year-end and New Year period.

The district has devised a two-track strategy: from the 20th for 12 days, a ‘Mapo-gu Red Road On-Site Situation Room’ will be set up at the KT&G Sangsangmadang Plaza in Hongdae, and a Disaster Safety Situation Room will operate at the Mapo-gu Office. The two situation rooms will share CCTV monitoring status, complaint reception, and patrol information in real time.

During the 12 days, on-site patrols and safety campaigns will be conducted daily from 8 p.m. to midnight, involving a total of 470 safety management personnel, including 260 Mapo-gu officials and 210 private personnel. On weekdays, 10 personnel will be deployed, while on Christmas and weekends, 60 personnel will be assigned.

Additionally, Mapo-gu will actively utilize its AI crowd density analysis system during this joint inspection period. The AI crowd density analysis system is installed and operated at six locations including the Hongdae club street and Hongdae Entrance Station area. Through CCTV screens, AI analyzes crowd density and displays warning messages and voice alerts indicating normal, caution, or danger levels, enabling pedestrians to easily recognize crowding situations.

During the recent Halloween period, the AI crowd density analysis system installed in the club street, which experienced sudden crowd surges, sounded alarms twice, effectively playing its role in crowd safety management.

In the key management areas such as Hongdae club street, Hongdae Entrance Station surroundings, and Red Road sections R3 to R5, district officials will focus on cracking down on illegal parking and unauthorized storage that pose risks to pedestrian traffic. Especially on crowded weekends, they will monitor risks such as overcrowding in dance-permitted establishments and deploy medical personnel to prepare for emergencies.

In other areas, private organizations such as the Tourism Environment Security Guards, Saemaul Association, Barugesalgi Movement Association, Volunteer Camps, and Local Autonomous Disaster Prevention Teams will conduct campaigns to ensure regional safety.

Gangnam-gu is preparing and implementing safety measures focusing on the Gangnam Station area, while Seongdong-gu is focusing on the Seongsu-dong area, both popular among young people.

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