Plan Korea Conducts Disaster Safety Helmet Delivery and Disaster Safety Education in Gyeongan County

Delivery of Disaster Safety Helmets and Implementation of Disaster Safety Education at 33 Elementary Schools Since 2019

International relief and development NGO Plan Korea announced that on November 21, it conducted a "Disaster Safety Lightweight Helmet Delivery and Disaster Safety Education" event at Jukbyeon Elementary School in Uljin-gun, Gyeongbuk Province. The event was graced by key figures including Hyundai Construction’s Shin Dal-won, Representative Director, Moon Jae-chul, Executive Director, Lee Jae-sik, Secretary General of the Construction Industry Social Contribution Foundation, Kim Byung-hak, Head of Plan Korea, Moon Man-ho, CEO of SecureMedic, and Yang Ki-chang, Principal of Uljin Jukbyeon Elementary School.

The "Disaster Safety Lightweight Helmet Distribution and Disaster Safety Education" social contribution project, which began in 2019 and is now in its fifth year, is a representative disaster safety initiative. Four organizations?Hyundai Construction, the Construction Industry Social Contribution Foundation, Plan Korea, and SecureMedic?have joined forces to provide lightweight helmets to elementary school students and teachers vulnerable to natural disasters such as earthquakes, aiming to enhance practical disaster response capabilities. This year, children in the Uljin area were provided with upgraded lightweight helmets along with systematic safety education.

The helmets delivered this year feature improved materials and folding mechanisms compared to previous models, significantly enhancing protective performance. These helmets help students and teachers evacuate safely during actual disaster situations and play a crucial role in raising awareness about disaster preparedness.

This year’s education program went beyond simple theoretical lessons and included various practical exercises such as proper helmet-wearing techniques. Through activities like learning the "Earthquake Song" to help children easily memorize evacuation methods and conducting "mock evacuation drills" simulating real situations, students were able to learn correct responses for actual disaster scenarios.

Plan Korea has expanded this initiative from Gyeongju in 2019 to Busan in 2021, Pohang in 2022, and Uljin this year. To date, the program has delivered over 14,000 disaster safety helmets to 33 elementary schools across four regions and regularly provided disaster safety education and mock evacuation drills to more than 13,000 children. This has become an essential safety net in preparation for increasingly frequent natural disasters such as earthquakes.

A Hyundai Construction official stated, “South Korea is no longer a safe zone from earthquakes, and sufficient education before disasters occur is a critical factor in increasing survival chances.” He added, “We will continue to support various educational programs and safety helmets so that children can grow up in a safe environment and will persistently work to enhance community safety.”

Plan Korea commented, “This project holds significant meaning in protecting community safety and helping future generations develop the ability to respond safely in disaster situations.” They further added, “We will continue to play an important role in growing together with local communities through such social contribution activities.”