Jungnang-gu Provides On-site Safety Experience Education for Daycare Centers ... Gwanak-gu Develops Comprehensive Disaster Safety Measures for Disabled Persons

[Seoul District News] Jungnang-gu Conducts On-site Safety Experience Education for Local 6-Year-Old Daycare and Kindergarten Children & Fire Safety, First Aid, and Traffic Safety Training Including Fire Extinguisher Use and CPR... Gwanak-gu Establishes Disaster Response System with AI Emergency Safety Alert Service, Installable Security Windows, and 1:1 Public Official Matching & Vulnerable Evacuee DB Created for Disaster Preparedness and On-site Rescue Use... Seocho-gu Hosts 'Dream Start Exhibition' in District Office Lobby on 15-16

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Jungnang-gu (Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi) will conduct on-site safety experience education for children aged 6 to 7 starting this month.

The purpose is to provide experience-based safety education to children vulnerable to safety issues, to raise safety awareness, improve their ability to respond to disasters or emergencies, and prevent safety accident damages.

Until this year, to prevent the spread of COVID-19, professional instructors will visit local daycare centers and kindergartens directly to conduct about one hour of education for classes of 20 to 30 children. Starting next year, education will resume at the Children's Safety Experience Education Center located at Sangbong 1-dong Community Center.

The education covers three areas: ▲fire safety ▲first aid ▲traffic safety, including instructions on how to act during a fire, how to use a fire extinguisher, how to respond in emergencies, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) methods.

In first aid education, children can practice CPR on human-shaped balloons, and in fire extinguisher training, they will remove safety pins from light fire extinguishers, providing child-tailored education using safety experience tools.

Ryu Kyung-gi, Mayor of Jungnang-gu, said, “In these times when safety is paramount, we have prepared education so that children can directly experience and learn to raise their safety awareness. We will continue to provide educational programs to enhance safety awareness and do our best to build a local safety network to protect all residents.”

Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Jun-hee) is strengthening the safety of people with disabilities against various disasters and safety accidents by preparing a comprehensive disaster safety plan for the disabled, aiming to build a more thorough and solid safety network.

As of October 2022, there are 20,182 registered disabled persons in Gwanak-gu, accounting for 4.1% of the total population. Among them, 1,097 live on basement floors, representing 5.4% of all disabled persons. Particularly, low-income disabled persons have a higher rate of basement residence, making them more vulnerable to disaster response.

Recognizing the physical and social vulnerabilities of disability combined with recent uncertainties in weather forecasting, the district has prepared a 'Comprehensive Disaster Safety Plan for the Disabled' with the goal of achieving 'zero disaster safety accidents for the disabled.'

First, an ‘AI Emergency Safety Alert Service’ will be implemented for severely disabled persons by installing fire detectors, activity sensors, and emergency call devices in their homes to help them evacuate quickly and notify the local fire station promptly in emergencies.

For disabled households living in flood-prone basement floors, operable security windows that allow easy escape during emergencies will be installed, and a one-on-one matching system with public officials will be strengthened to ensure rapid rescue. Additionally, customized disaster safety guides will be provided to families and caregivers to enhance disaster response capabilities.

Since March, the district has been the only local government nationwide to obtain consent for providing personal information of disabled persons and has signed a business agreement with the local fire station to build and share a ‘Safety Rescue Database (DB) for Vulnerable Evacuees’ containing necessary information such as residence, age, and disability type.

The district aims to complete the DB by 2026 with 4,000 cases annually, prioritizing vulnerable individuals such as those living alone, elderly, and severely disabled, encouraging applications so that all disabled persons in the area can receive assistance.

Through close cooperation with related agencies including fire stations and functional departments such as safety management and flood control, the district will adopt a ‘two-track strategy’ to ensure the rapid and safe evacuation and rescue of disabled persons during disasters.

Park Jun-hee, Mayor of Gwanak-gu, stated, “Interest and support for the safety of disabled persons must be further strengthened so that disasters do not impact them more harshly and unequally. We will continue to build a more thorough and solid safety network to eliminate safety blind spots and ensure disabled persons can feel safe from various disasters and accidents.”

On a Thursday when the autumn sunlight shines on beautiful maple leaves, 6-year-old Kim Dae-jun (alias) holds his mother’s hand and walks to the Dream Start Family Harmony Cooking Class. While cooking with his mother, Dae-jun’s emotional expression language has increased. His mother, who actively participated in this year’s Dream Start family camp and parent education, said, “We have been connected with the Dream Start program for seven years. I am grateful for the unwavering dedication to the children.”

Seocho-gu (Mayor Jeon Seong-su) will hold a ‘Dream Start Exhibition’ featuring works created by Dream Start children and families from the 15th to the 16th in the first-floor lobby of Seocho-gu Office.

The exhibition will be held under the theme ‘2022, Our Days Shining Like a DREAM.’ It will showcase works created by children and families participating in the Dream Start program over the year and engage with local residents.

The exhibition includes a variety of works such as clay creations by young children, personalized picture books made in the art integration class, illustrated diaries from the family harmony cooking class, horticultural works from the caregiver gardening class, and a ‘Congratulations on Graduation’ photo book for graduating children.

Additionally, the event will feature videos of a children’s musical creation process from the emotional healing music class, water park experiences with Dream families, and family recovery support projects such as family rural experiences, sharing memories of Dream Start children over the year.

‘Seocho-gu Dream Start’ began in 2015 to promote healthy growth and development of children and support their growth into healthy and happy members of society. It actively conducts integrated child case management, customized welfare services, and local support connections every year.

Jeon Seong-su, Mayor of Seocho-gu, said, “Through this event, I hope vulnerable children gain confidence and experience proactive achievements, and that community and resident interest and support for them will expand.”