Field-Centered Wildfire Inspections,
Closure of Hiking Trails and Various Wildfire Prevention Activities
Sacheon City in Gyeongnam Province announced on the 24th that it has entered an emergency work system in response to the issuance of a national wildfire disaster crisis alert at the "Severe" level and in preparation for large-scale spring wildfires.
The Korea Forest Service raised the national crisis alert for wildfires that occurred in all regions nationwide from "Caution" to "Severe" on the 22nd.
The national wildfire disaster crisis alert consists of four levels: Attention → Caution → Warning → Severe, depending on the scale of the wildfire and concerns about its spread. The "Severe" alert is issued when a large-scale wildfire has occurred or when simultaneous wildfires are expected to cause extensive damage.
Sacheon City Declares Serious Wildfire Disaster, Initiates Emergency Duty System and Holds Countermeasure Meeting.
Accordingly, Sacheon City is operating a disaster situation room until the wildfire disaster alert is lifted, designating administrative guidance responsibility zones, conducting field-centered wildfire inspections, closing hiking trails, and carrying out various wildfire prevention activities.
The city first issued an emergency work order requiring more than a quarter of employees to be assigned and on standby at each of its 33 departments and offices.
These employees will provide administrative guidance in their responsibility zones to prevent incidents such as wildfires caused by carelessness of hikers, burning of agricultural waste, and improper handling of wood boilers.
In addition, from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends, wildfire prevention campaigns, guidance, and crackdowns are conducted through wildfire monitors and village broadcasts to prevent large-scale spring wildfires.
The city has also deployed mobile wildfire monitors to wildfire-prone areas such as restricted mountain access zones and hiking trails, designated 22 areas including Waryongsan covering 49,452 hectares as restricted mountain access zones, and closed 12 kilometers across five hiking trail routes.
In particular, Mayor Park Dongsik and heads of departments and offices are directly visiting and patrolling the Wildfire Prevention Countermeasures Headquarters, wildfire monitor posts, and guard posts to check on-site wildfire prevention measures.
Additionally, the city has increased wildfire warning broadcasts from four to eight times a day, broadcasting through 19 disaster alert facilities, village amplifiers, and home receivers, and is conducting wildfire prevention broadcasts at least four times a day using village amplifiers, administrative vehicles, and wildfire monitoring vehicles.
From March to April, the city is also conducting collection and shredding of agricultural waste to eliminate wildfire causes in advance and is continuously inspecting wood boilers.
Mayor Park Dongsik said, "Large-scale spring wildfires are occurring simultaneously nationwide, and the trend is spreading due to dry air and strong winds," adding, "Please ensure perfect wildfire prevention so that citizens can live safely."
He added, "Please pay special attention to the safety of firefighting personnel and public officials deployed at wildfire sites."
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