'Crowd Management TF' 1st Meeting... Promotion of Crowd Accident Manual Development
[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The National Police Agency announced on the 9th that it has formed a 'Police Grand Innovation Task Force (TF)' to prevent the recurrence of incidents similar to the Itaewon tragedy.
The TF is co-chaired by external experts and former police administrators (Chief Superintendent), with all bureau chiefs at the director level of the National Police Agency participating as members. It is subdivided into ▲Crowd Management Improvement Team ▲Situation Management and Reporting System Reform Team ▲Organizational Culture Innovation and Work Competency Enhancement Team to derive innovation plans by field. The National Police Agency plans to operate a general management team directly under Deputy Commissioner Woo Jong-su to implement the innovation plans proposed by the TF.
According to the National Police Agency, the Crowd Management Improvement Team will establish standards to predict and assess risks such as mass gatherings and disasters. Additionally, it plans to revise the police safety management manual, including situations of 'mass gatherings without organizers.' The team will also be responsible for establishing 'step-by-step order maintenance' measures according to crowd size.
The Situation Management and Reporting System Reform Team will focus on strengthening on-site response capabilities by analyzing problems throughout the 112 emergency call dispatch and response process. Various measures, including a full-time situation room manager system, will be reviewed to enhance situation management and command capabilities, aiming for a complete overhaul of the reporting system.
The Organizational Culture Innovation and Work Competency Enhancement Team will promote the recruitment and development of specialized personnel to strengthen response capabilities in special and professional fields such as disaster situations. It also plans to establish a practical workplace education system tailored to each police station to normalize situation management and command training by type.
A National Police Agency official stated, "We will establish a comprehensive innovation plan within the year and implement it without delay. Structural issues revealed in the inspection and investigation results of the Special Inspection Team and Special Investigation Headquarters will also be immediately reflected to enhance the plan's effectiveness."
On the same day at 3 p.m., the National Police Agency held the first meeting of the 'Crowd Management Measures Task Force (TF)' to begin preparing measures to prevent mass crowd accidents and strengthen on-site response capabilities. The aim is to supplement the shortcomings revealed by the Itaewon tragedy and build a systematic management system.
Twelve civilian experts attending the meeting advised creating a 'Crowd Management Manual' based on academic consultation and foreign cases, and strengthening response capabilities through customized training for on-site police officers. They also pointed out the need to establish a 'crowd density measurement model' and a 'risk warning system' utilizing advanced scientific technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence (AI), and information and communication technology (ICT).
Based on the opinions from the meeting, the police plan to prepare comprehensive prevention and response measures for crowd accidents. Commissioner Yoon Hee-geun said, "I feel an urgent crisis that if we do not change, we will regress. We will reconsider what truly serves the people and how to fundamentally protect public safety, and change the organizational structure and working methods accordingly."
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