Gyeonggi-do Donates 200 Million Won in Relief Funds to Gangneung Wildfire Victims

Gyeonggi Provincial Government Gwanggyo New Office Building

Gyeonggi Province will urgently provide 200 million KRW in disaster relief funds to the Gangneung area of Gangwon Province, which suffered significant damage with hundreds of evacuees due to a wildfire on the 11th. In addition, support projects such as volunteer work, psychological recovery, and forest restoration will be carried out.

On the 16th, Gyeonggi Province announced that it plans to deliver 200 million KRW in disaster relief funds for the evacuees of the 'Gangneung Wildfire Damage' to the National Disaster Relief Association, the authorized organization for collecting donations under the current 'Disaster Relief Act.'

The disaster relief fund is established under the Disaster Relief Act to protect evacuees and stabilize their lives, and it is used to support evacuees through designated donations.

Along with this disaster relief fund support, the province will also provide supplies such as clothing and snacks to evacuees and recovery workers through the Gyeonggi Volunteer Center.

Earlier, when a large wildfire broke out in the Nangok-dong area of Gangneung City, Gangwon Province, the province supported 124 firefighting personnel and 51 firefighting vehicles.

The province also anticipates the possibility of wildfires occurring within its own area and will operate 33 spring wildfire prevention headquarters situation rooms until the 15th of next month. Additionally, it has secured 17 wildfire suppression helicopters and 1,897 wildfire monitoring and suppression personnel (945 wildfire prevention and suppression specialists, 952 wildfire monitors). In particular, 11 mobile joint teams have been organized and are operating to eradicate illegal burning activities.

Since enacting the 'Gyeonggi Province Disaster Relief Fund Operation and Management Ordinance' in 2019, the province has supported large-scale disasters in other cities and provinces using the disaster relief fund, including 5 billion KRW for COVID-19 prevention supplies in Daegu and Gyeongbuk in March 2020, and 1.5 billion KRW for heavy rain damage in Jeonnam and Gyeongnam in July 2021.

Kim Dong-yeon, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, said, "I extend my deepest condolences to those who suffered great damage from the wildfire. I hope the support provided by Gyeonggi Province will help with the recovery efforts, and that the damage caused by the wildfire will be restored quickly so that the people of Gangwon Province can return to their normal daily lives."