Jinju October Festival Praised for Successfully Concluding as an Accident-Free Event

A Massive Festival Draws 1.72 Million Visitors
Systematic On-Site Management Sets a Model for Safe Festivals

The Jinju October Festival, which opened on October 4 and concluded its grand finale on October 19, is receiving praise for being successfully wrapped up as an accident-free festival over 16 days, thanks to thorough safety management and close cooperation among relevant organizations.

In particular, despite being a large-scale event that attracted 1.72 million people, it has been evaluated as a model case of a safe festival due to its systematic on-site management.

According to the city of Jinju on October 23, analysis by KT Big Data showed that 1.67 million visitors attended Jinju’s October festivals this year, including the Jinju Namgang Yudeung Festival, the Gaecheon Art Festival, and the Korea Drama Festival. When including the crowds gathered at the National Folk Bullfighting Championship and various performances and event venues held nearby, the total number of visitors reached 1.72 million.

Photo of Jinju Namgang Yudeung Festival.

This represents a sharp increase of more than 500,000 compared to last year’s 1.18 million, which is attributed to the unique changes introduced to each festival and the Chuseok holiday period. The city’s safety management measures for the festival, which recorded zero accidents even with such a massive crowd of 1.72 million, are once again drawing attention.

Jinju City established a safety management plan in advance through prior consultations with relevant agencies such as the police and fire departments, and conducted joint safety inspections before the event to identify and eliminate potential risk factors ahead of time, which is believed to have been effective.

In particular, during the festival, more than 16,000 safety management personnel were deployed, with on-site control strengthened in areas where crowds were concentrated. In addition, real-time monitoring was conducted through CCTV installed at the festival site and an integrated control center. In the event of an incident, the disaster safety communication network (PS-LTE) was utilized to ensure swift information sharing and response among relevant agencies.

Furthermore, five emergency medical booths were set up within the festival grounds, equipped with medical staff and automated external defibrillators (AEDs) to respond to injuries. Jinju Fire Station also had ambulances and firefighting personnel on standby at all times to enable immediate response in case of emergencies.

Additionally, to ensure the safe movement of visitors and prevent crowd accidents, Jinju City set the festival area based on the maximum instantaneous capacity, implemented block zoning to disperse people by area, and operated one-way pedestrian routes. All safety personnel wore standardized uniforms for easy identification by visitors, thereby enhancing on-site responsiveness.

Most notably, during peak times when large crowds gathered for events such as the water fireworks and drone show, 440 additional safety personnel were intensively deployed at key points including the Namgang floating bridge, Jinju Bridge, Cheonsu Bridge, and Chokseokmun. In cooperation with Jinju Police Station, right-side walking was implemented throughout the festival site to alleviate crowd congestion. Effective crowd management measures were introduced, such as temporary one-way traffic on the first floating bridge, operation of temporary crosswalks, one-way routes in areas expected to be congested, and the use of LED right-walking guidance signs, all of which actively contributed to visitor convenience.

In terms of transportation, the movement routes of vehicles and pedestrians were separated to avoid congestion at entrances, and traffic police and guides were stationed at major intersections to reduce traffic jams and facilitate movement. To further improve transportation, 38 temporary parking lots with a total of 13,266 spaces were secured, an increase of about 12% compared to the previous year. The operation of the “Hamo Call Bus” and shuttle buses circulating five stops around the venue also helped ease traffic congestion.

An official from Jinju City stated, “This year’s Jinju Namgang Yudeung Festival was able to conclude successfully without a single safety incident thanks to the cooperation of citizens, visitors, and close collaboration among relevant agencies. We will continue to meticulously prepare and pay attention to every detail to ensure that safety remains the top priority for future festivals.”

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