Councilor Park Pilsun of Gwangju City Releases "Gwangju Sinkhole Map"

A Total of 154 Cases in the Past 7 Years
Concentrated in Subway Stations and Old City Areas
"Need for Information Disclosure and Preventive Systems"

Sinkhole Map of Gwangju Area. Provided by Park Pilsun, Gwangju City Council Member

Park Pilsun, a member of the Gwangju City Council (Democratic Party, Gwangsan 3), released the "Gwangju Sinkhole Map" on April 21, which was created based on sinkhole incidents that occurred between 2018 and 2024. The sinkhole map for Gwangju, disclosed by Councilor Park, can be accessed on a dedicated website.

This proactive response at the local council level is drawing attention, especially as a series of sinkholes have recently appeared across various parts of Gwangju, heightening public anxiety about safety.

According to data submitted to Councilor Park by the Gwangju city government, a total of 154 sinkholes (ground subsidence incidents) occurred in Gwangju during the specified period. There were 2 cases of human injury and 11 cases of vehicle damage.

By district, Gwangsan-gu had the highest number with 61 cases (39.6%), followed by Dong-gu with 31 cases, Seo-gu with 27 cases, Buk-gu with 22 cases, and Nam-gu with 13 cases. Notably, sinkholes were found to be concentrated near subway stations such as Namgwangju Station (9 cases) and Geumnamno 4-ga Station (4 cases), as well as in old city areas such as Wolgok-dong (10 cases), Bia-dong (9 cases), and Hwajeong-dong (9 cases) in Gwangsan-gu.

According to the Special Act on Underground Safety Management (Underground Safety Act), the mayor is required to designate areas with a high risk of sinkhole accidents as "priority management zones" and manage them accordingly. However, it was confirmed that Gwangju City has not designated a single such area to date.

Councilor Park stated, "Politics that only mourns and takes measures after an accident has occurred is not fulfilling its responsibility," and emphasized, "Even now, we must protect citizens' lives and safety through effective preemptive measures for high-risk areas and by designating priority management zones."

Park further pointed out, "Gwangju is particularly vulnerable to ground subsidence due to the overlap of aging sewage pipes and underground subway construction," and added, "We need to focus on managing vulnerable points based on accurate data and shift to a system where we respond together with citizens using publicly available safety maps."

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