Guro-gu Operates 247 Cooling Centers for Seniors

From 9 AM to 6 PM on weekdays... 21 Extended Cooling Centers Operated During Heatwave Warnings

Guro-gu (District Mayor Moon Heon-il) has announced the '2024 Senior Citizens Heatwave Shelter Operation Plan' to protect the health and safety of the elderly from the summer heatwave.

The district will operate a total of 247 senior heatwave shelters from June 1 to September 30, including 194 senior centers, 6 welfare centers, 16 community centers, 29 others (private and welfare facilities), and 2 safety accommodations.

The operating hours of the heatwave shelters are from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays.

When a heatwave warning is issued, the operating hours of 21 extended shelters such as community centers and welfare centers will be extended until 9 p.m., and 'heatwave safety accommodations' will be operated for vulnerable households such as elderly living alone aged 65 or older and elderly couples.

The heatwave safety accommodations are two hotels in the area that the district has contracted with, supporting up to 20 rooms per day (maximum 2 people per room) from weekday afternoons to 11 a.m. the next day, excluding weekends and holidays. Each person can use the service for up to 5 nights, with a maximum of 2 consecutive nights.

Also, starting this year, a repair subsidy of 200,000 KRW per location will be provided for old air conditioners in senior center heatwave shelters, and the hourly wage for extended shelter staff has been raised from 14,430 KRW (1.5 times last year's minimum wage) to 17,160 KRW (1.5 times the Seoul-type living wage).

To ensure the proper operation of the heatwave shelters, penalty regulations have been established for shelters that violate the rules. Compliance with operating hours and prevention of interference with shelter use by non-members of senior centers will be comprehensively inspected, and after the first and second warnings, on the third violation, penalties such as recovery of subsidies and cancellation of heatwave shelter designation will be imposed.

Moon Heon-il, Mayor of Guro-gu, said, "We will make every effort to protect vulnerable groups from heatwaves so that everyone can have a comfortable and healthy summer," and added, "We hope residents will familiarize themselves with heatwave response guidelines and actively cooperate to prevent heatwave damage."