Yangcheon-gu, Intensive Disinfection Against 'Lovebug' Throughout All Areas

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Appearance of Lee Gi-jae, Yangcheon-gu Mayor, participating in a large-scale public-private joint intensive quarantine activity targeting the entire area. Provided by Yangcheon-gu.

Yangcheon-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Lee Gi-jae) announced on the 21st that it has launched a large-scale public-private joint intensive pest control campaign to eradicate the red-backed lovebug (scientific name: Plecia nearctica), which has been rapidly increasing throughout the metropolitan area. The district plans to continue special pest control measures against lovebugs starting with this campaign.

Lovebugs, which travel in male-female pairs, are non-toxic and do not transmit infectious diseases. However, due to the recent surge in their population and their habit of flying towards people, complaints about inconvenience have exploded.

In response, the district held an emergency pest control response meeting chaired by the district mayor the day before and began a large-scale intensive pest control campaign across the entire area from the 21st to minimize inconvenience to residents.

On that day, the public-private joint intensive pest control was carried out in three tracks: ▲ pest control by the public health center focusing on urban areas, multi-use facilities, and mountainous areas ▲ pest control by the parks and green spaces department focusing on parks, mountains, and Anyangcheon Stream ▲ and village-focused pest control by 18 community service centers. The pest control process mobilized all available resources, including 15 pest control vehicles such as high-pressure water trucks, ultra-fine particle sprayers, and rechargeable and compressed sprayers.

District Mayor Lee Gi-jae personally participated in the public health center’s pest control operations targeting nine areas with frequent lovebug and pest complaints, including Mok 1-dong, Sinjeong 1 and 3-dong, and Sinwol 7-dong, and directed the pest control activities on site. Additionally, high-pressure water pest control was conducted at five major green space locations where lovebugs frequently appear, including Omok Park, Jangsu Park, and Sinjeongsan Mountain.

The district will also continue to promote “community gap pest control” using officials from the 18 community service centers who are familiar with local conditions and related organizations. Immediately after the emergency pest control meeting on the 20th, all neighborhoods established “daily pest control plans,” and the village intensive pest control teams, consisting of about 400 members, will carry out pest control operations for more than two hours daily at different times targeting major streets, parks, markets, and lovebug-infested areas within the district.

Meanwhile, in May, the district launched the “Village Love Volunteer Group,” a public-private joint pest control system, in cooperation with the Saemaul Leaders Association of Yangcheon-gu. About 100 members, approximately six per neighborhood, have proactively conducted intensive pest control activities targeting vulnerable areas such as summer hygiene pest habitats. In addition, 32 insect traps were newly installed in parks and village squares with high foot traffic, bringing the total to 176 traps operating until November, focusing on attracting and disposing of pests and debris.

District Mayor Lee Gi-jae said, “The psychological discomfort and inconvenience caused to residents by lovebugs are too great to overlook, so we are launching a large-scale intensive pest control campaign across the entire district. We will carry out thorough and well-organized pest control to ensure that residents’ daily lives are not disrupted.”