Jinju City Establishes Comprehensive Measures to Prepare for Summer Natural Disasters

Jinju City Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters to Operate from May to October
TF Team Launched to Prepare for Heat Waves

Jinju City, Gyeongnam, will establish the Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters and enter an emergency work system from this month until October to prepare for natural disasters in the summer such as typhoons, heavy rain, and heatwaves.

The Jinju City Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters will operate in cooperation with relevant departments, related organizations (police, fire department, Korea Water Resources Corporation, Korea Electric Power Corporation), private organizations, local leaders, and residents to maintain a rapid communication system and ensure that the golden time for life-saving is not missed in the event of a disaster. In addition, comprehensive countermeasures for typhoons, heavy rain, and heatwaves have been established, with pre-inspections of vulnerable facilities and groups, and plans for swift response in case of disaster.

To prevent flooding in low-lying areas, the city has completed test operations and safety inspections at 78 drainage pump stations. Flood control materials such as portable flood barriers, instant absorbent sandbags, PP sandbags, wooden stakes, and vinyl have been pre-deployed to towns and districts to prevent flooding of homes and shops.

Jinju City Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters is conducting a countermeasure meeting.

To prevent river disasters, the city has inspected facilities, construction sites, and cofferdams within river areas, and reinforced river maintenance through pre-rainy season repairs and dredging. Based on the discharge volume of Namgang Dam and rainfall, access roads, walking trails, sports facilities, and parking lots in riverbanks will be preemptively controlled.

The Forest Department, towns and districts, and the Landslide Prevention Team have conducted pre-inspections at 147 landslide-prone areas, and evacuation plans have been updated to ensure prompt evacuation in the event of landslide advisories or warnings.

In addition, the city plans to quickly provide shelters and relief supplies in the event of displaced residents or temporary evacuees through the improvement of disaster relief plans to minimize inconvenience for residents.

The city has checked the operation status of the drainage pumps at the Namgang underpass and installed road blocking facilities to control vehicle entry in case of underpass flooding. A plan has also been established for the deployment of personnel for traffic control in the event of flooding.

With the installation of drainage pumps, the lower roads of Jinju Bridge and Jinyang Bridge, which have been prone to frequent flooding, are expected to be free from the risk of vehicle flooding and traffic inconvenience, allowing for safer road use.

Jinju City's local autonomous disaster prevention team, consisting of about 560 residents from 30 towns and districts who are well-acquainted with the area, is supplementing administrative efforts in all stages of disaster prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery.

The local disaster prevention team is engaged in various activities such as promoting public safety guidelines, supporting resident evacuation, distributing relief supplies, and cleaning and restoring flood-affected sites. Their active participation is expected again this summer in the event of disasters.

Ten departments, including the Citizen Safety Division, Health Administration Division, and Senior and Disabled Persons Division, have formed and are operating a Heatwave Task Force to respond to heatwaves. The city has designated 577 air-conditioned facilities such as senior centers and village halls as 'Cooling Shelters' to prevent accidents caused by unprotected outdoor exposure during heatwaves, and will provide a budget of 100 million KRW for cooling costs until the end of September.

In addition, the city will conduct welfare calls and heat illness prevention education for 3,810 elderly people receiving customized care services, and will continuously inspect heatwave-vulnerable groups such as elderly agricultural workers and related sites.

The Jinju City Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters stated, "We are implementing our countermeasures for each sector without delay, and we will do our utmost to ensure that Jinju City's safety system for summer storm and flood damage and heatwaves operates properly in the field so that not a single casualty occurs."