Songpa-gu Ensures Thorough Crowd Management for Luminarie Festival Ahead of Halloween

Pre-Event Safety Inspection to Prevent Accidents During Festival Period Focused Safety Management for Crowd Control... 700 Safety Personnel Deployed in Expected Overcrowded Areas for 5 Days Until Halloween Day to Manage Population Density... ▲Special On-Site Inspections ▲Regular Patrols ▲Songpa CCTV Control Center Monitoring

Songpa-gu (Mayor Seo Gang-seok) announced that it is implementing a ‘Special Safety Management Plan’ for Halloween Day and will focus all efforts on safety management during the ‘Autumn and Winter of the Lake and Luminaria (hereinafter Luminaria Festival)’ held at Seokchon Lake from October 27 until the end of February next year.

Above all, the district has made thorough preparations to prevent safety accidents among lake visitors.

Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, explained the background of the initiative, emphasizing, “The top priority of administration is to protect the lives and safety of residents from various accidents and disasters,” and that preventing urban disasters is of utmost importance.

First, before the festival began, on October 27, a pre-site inspection was conducted to prevent safety accidents related to visitor movement and electrical issues arising from the installation of landscape lighting, blocking potential hazards in advance.

In particular, the district established a separate ‘Halloween Crowd Safety Management Plan’ in preparation for the expected crowd concentration during Halloween, focusing on preventing safety accidents caused by population density from the 27th to the 31st.

Accordingly, four areas expected to be overcrowded on Halloween were selected, including Seokchon Lake where the Luminaria Festival is held, Bangi-dong Food Alley, Sincheon-dong Food Alley, and the Jamsil Station area. Real-time intensive monitoring is conducted through the Songpa CCTV Control Center. If a critical stage (more than 5 people per 1㎡) of crowd density is detected, immediate response is enabled through cooperation with the Songpa Police Station and Songpa Fire Station.

Additionally, over 500 safety management personnel, including police officers, firefighters, and volunteer patrol teams, are deployed in these areas for five days. A joint public-private inspection team is formed to conduct on-site inspections and patrols. A constant response system is maintained through on-site monitoring of crowd density.

Last weekend, anticipating an influx of autumn visitors to Seokchon Lake with the start of the festival, the district operated an on-site situation room and mobilized about 200 safety personnel, including professionals and volunteers, over three days to focus on preventing safety accidents. The steep downhill sections were closely managed, and one-way traffic guidance was provided to maintain crowd flow around Seokchon Lake in a counterclockwise direction, strengthening order among visitors.

Furthermore, the district plans to ensure residents’ safety by utilizing the ‘Multi-Crowd Convergence Analysis Platform’ installed at three locations within Seokchon Lake. This platform provides visitors with congestion information via LED electronic display boards called ‘Pedestrian Congestion Alerts,’ which categorize congestion into interest, caution, warning, and critical stages. It also shares real-time high-precision analysis of sudden crowd density occurrences with related agencies through the ‘Crowd Analysis Platform.’

Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, stated, “We have made perfect preparations for the safe viewing and convenience of everyone visiting Songpa. We hope many people come and safely enjoy the ‘Autumn and Winter of the Lake and Luminaria.’ Moving forward, Songpa-gu will do its utmost to protect the lives and safety of residents to prevent any urban disasters from occurring.”