20s Rescued After Attempting to Jump Off Mapo Bridge Railing at 2 AM on the 1st
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The quick judgment of four high school students passing by Mapo Bridge saved the life of a man in his 20s who was about to make an extreme choice.
According to officials from the Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters on the 13th, at 2:11 a.m. on the 1st, the water rescue team spotted a person attempting to throw themselves over the railing near the second Lifeline phone on the north end of Mapo Bridge via CCTV, reported it, and the comprehensive situation room received the report and immediately ordered the nearby Yeongdeungpo Fire Station to dispatch. When the fire team arrived at the scene, the man trying to jump over the railing was being held by a police officer and four citizens in a critical situation.
The citizens who participated in the rescue were students attending Hwanil High School in their third year. They had been studying late at a study room and were taking a short walk by the nearby Han River when they saw a man hanging from the railing of Mapo Bridge being held by a police officer. The students sensed the emergency situation and ran without hesitation to help the officer hold the man so he would not fall into the Han River.
When the fire team arrived, while the police officer and students were holding the man, they cut the safety wire of the bridge, climbed over the railing, and quickly completed the rescue. This all happened within 8 minutes of the initial report.
One of the students, Jeong Da-woon, said, “The moment I saw the scene, I felt it was an emergency and ran with my friends to hold the person hanging there. Although I got some injuries and my arms hurt a lot during the rescue, I feel very proud to have saved a life.”
The firefighters who responded to the report said, “We were amazed by the students’ calm response and courage in such a critical situation. The person was already hanging on the railing, and if the students hadn’t held him, he could have fallen into the Han River.”
Yeongdeungpo Fire Station plans to award the students with commendations and notify their school of their good deeds to encourage them. Kwon Tae-mi, head of Yeongdeungpo Fire Station, said, “Thanks to the students’ courage in an emergency, a precious life was saved. We encourage their righteous actions and ask that they continue to be people who are essential to our society.”
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
