Gwangju City Goes All Out to Alleviate Citizen Inconvenience During Lunar New Year Holiday

Operation of Integrated Situation Room from 21st to 24th... Average of 60 Staff on Duty Daily

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Gwangju Metropolitan City (Mayor Kang Gijeong) announced on the 19th that it will operate a comprehensive situation room from the 21st to the 24th to resolve citizen inconveniences during the Lunar New Year holiday and manage emergency situations.

The comprehensive situation room is composed of 239 members across 7 teams: general situation, ancestral rites & medical, traffic, environment & cleaning, citizen & safety, fire department, and water supply, with an average of 60 people on duty daily.

First, to actively respond in the early stages of disaster situations such as heavy snow and cold waves, and to prepare for emergencies, ambulances will be pre-positioned in densely populated areas such as those with returning holiday travelers.

Fuel supply situation rooms, water supply comprehensive situation rooms, and cleaning mobile response teams will be operated to minimize citizen inconvenience. To facilitate transportation for returning travelers, a traffic countermeasure situation room will provide real-time traffic information and strive to maintain smooth traffic flow.

During the holiday period, traffic information can be checked on the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport website, the National Traffic Information Center, and the automated response system.

For other inconveniences, inquiries can be made to the 120 call center and the duty office for guidance.

Special quarantine measures for Lunar New Year in response to COVID-19 will also be implemented.

Quarantine measures to prevent infection spread will be promoted at ancestral rites and memorial facilities, and multi-use transportation facilities expected to be crowded during the holiday, and thorough quarantine management systems will be maintained at elderly nursing facilities and day and night care centers.

In addition, 20 emergency medical institutions and 4 emergency room operation reporting institutions will provide 24-hour medical care as usual to minimize gaps in holiday medical services.

Nine screening clinics, including autonomous district health centers, will be operated to actively respond to the COVID-19 situation. Furthermore, designated medical institutions and pharmacies that are open will be appointed to ensure no inconvenience in medical treatment and medicine purchase.

Medical information can be obtained via the 120 call center, 119 emergency situation management center, 129 health and welfare call center, as well as city and autonomous district websites and the emergency medical portal ‘E-gen’.

By using the smartphone application ‘Emergency Medical Information Provision,’ users can identify their location and check nearby open medical institutions or pharmacies on a map.

Price tag system inspections are being conducted on items with concerns about price increases, and price stabilization measures are being promoted, including guidance and crackdowns on origin labeling of agricultural, livestock, fishery products, and processed goods for ceremonial and gift use at large marts and traditional markets.

Choi Seonyeong, head of the city’s autonomous administration department, said, “We will do our best to maintain the management system of the comprehensive situation room so that citizens can have a safe and comfortable Lunar New Year.”

Meanwhile, Gwangju City has established the ‘Lunar New Year Special Quarantine and Citizen Life Stability Measures’ and is promoting 49 tasks across 10 items in 3 major areas over 3 weeks from the 5th to the 24th to ensure a safe and comfortable Lunar New Year.