Establishment of Emergency Quarantine System to Prepare for Wuhan Pneumonia
[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Yoon Yoseop] Busan City announced on the 22nd that it will operate the ‘8 Comprehensive Situation Rooms by Sector’ during the Lunar New Year holiday from the 24th to the 27th.
The city will run task forces consisting of 242 members (2,540 personnel on-site separately) across eight sectors including general administration, transportation, disaster prevention, health, environment and cleaning, wildfire prevention, water supply, and firefighting to reduce citizen inconvenience and ensure public safety, maintaining Busan’s security as usual during the holiday period.
First, to facilitate smooth transportation for returning travelers and visitors to ancestral graves, the number of operations for express and intercity buses (east and west), railways, and airlines will be increased by 290 trips from the usual 2,137 trips per day to 2,427 trips per day. For parking convenience during the holiday, 53,373 parking spaces at 545 locations such as school playgrounds and 5,046 parking spaces near seven cemeteries including Yeongnak Park will be opened.
Additionally, to prevent fires during the holiday, from the 6th to the 17th, a special inspection was conducted on 266 fire-vulnerable residential facilities such as small-scale lodging facilities and residential vinyl greenhouses to maintain a safety accident response system including fire prevention management in advance.
In particular, in preparation for the domestic inflow of ‘Wuhan Pneumonia (Novel Coronavirus Infection)’ spreading in China, a ‘Quarantine Task Force’ was formed on the 20th and is working 24-hour emergency duty together with the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. During the holiday, 35 emergency medical institutions including Dong-A University Hospital will operate 24 hours as usual, and 819 hospitals and clinics and 1,354 pharmacies will operate on designated dates as ‘open hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies’ during the holiday. Health centers in 16 districts and counties will also provide medical services during the holiday.
During the holiday, each district and county will designate garbage collection schedules to promote citizen convenience, and information on types of waste, collection days, and collection times will be publicized through neighborhood newsletters and institutional websites to prevent confusion among residents.
Mayor Oh Keo-don of Busan said, “Since a Chinese national who entered through Incheon Airport was confirmed to have Wuhan Pneumonia, quarantine will be strengthened for both domestic and foreign nationals entering through Gimhae Airport,” adding, “We will provide administrative services as usual to ensure that returning travelers and tourists visiting Busan do not experience any inconvenience.”
Mayor Oh plans to visit seven sites related to livelihood and economy over two days from the 22nd to the 23rd to communicate with relevant personnel.
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