"Will the People Be Left Behind Again?"... Assemblyman Kim Daesik Proposes Amendment to Urban Stream Basin Flood Damage Prevention Act

Recurring Damage Raises Criticism Over Lack of Preventive System

Assemblyman Kim Daesik of the National Assembly's Education Committee (People Power Party, Sasang District, Busan) announced on September 10 that he has sponsored the partial amendment bill to the "Urban Stream Basin Flood Damage Prevention Measures Act" in response to recurring flood damage caused by heavy rainfall.

Recently, record-breaking heavy rains have led to urban stream overflows and drainage failures, resulting in ongoing casualties and property damage. According to data from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, a total of 138 people have died in urban areas due to concentrated heavy rainfall over the past five years, and more than 7 trillion won has been spent on recovery during the same period. Nevertheless, as the damage continues to recur, there have been ongoing criticisms regarding the lack of a preventive system.

The office of Assemblyman Kim reported, "Despite Sasang District in Busan being a representative area prone to frequent flooding, delays in improvements have led to repeated damage to residents. On the 13th, Sasang District experienced 192mm of concentrated heavy rain, resulting in 21 reports of flood damage."

Most of the affected areas are around Gwaebeop-dong, Sasang Station, and the intersection near Hakjang-dong Sasang-gu Office, all of which have long been identified as regions with repeated flood damage.

Lawmakers including Dae-sik Kim and staff members are inspecting flood-affected areas such as sinkholes caused by heavy rain.

This amendment allows for areas within urban stream basins that repeatedly experience or are at risk of flood damage when a certain amount of rainfall occurs to be designated as "habitual flood-prone areas." It stipulates that the national and local governments must establish improvement measures and provide necessary financial support. Through this, the policy focus will shift from post-disaster recovery to establishing a legal foundation for preventive measures.

Assemblyman Kim explained, "Urban flood damage is becoming more frequent and severe due to climate change, and relying solely on post-disaster recovery, as we do now, cannot protect public safety. The core of this amendment is to clearly define the designation and improvement of habitual flood-prone areas in the law, thereby requiring the national and local governments to take preventive action."

He also argued, "Although Sasang District in Busan has already been designated by the government as an area in need of risk improvement, repeated delays in the project have led to ongoing damage for residents. Concentrated heavy rainfall is not just a local issue but a nationwide disaster, so the National Assembly must establish a legal foundation to protect the lives and property of the people."

Status of casualties caused by concentrated heavy rainfall and urban flooding in specific areas over the past five years. (Unit: persons, Source: Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Office of Assemblyman Kim Daesik)

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