Junggu District in Seoul has installed and is operating the "Oh! Bingo! Conscience Bottled Water Refrigerator" at five locations within the district to provide free bottled water in preparation for this summer's heat wave.
The bottled water refrigerators operate daily from 10 a.m. until supplies run out. Each refrigerator is stocked three times a day with 200 bottles per delivery, providing a total of 3,000 bottles of water per day free of charge to residents suffering from the heat.
The bottled water refrigerators have been set up to prevent dehydration and heatstroke among the elderly, people with disabilities, low-income residents, and those who spend extended periods outdoors, as these groups are particularly vulnerable to extreme heat.
The refrigerators at the Shared Workshop for Residents in Small Room Housing, Cheonggu Station Shelter, Hwanghak Ssamsi Park, and Son Keechung Sports Park (e-Learning Center) began operating on July 3, while Dasan Children's Park is scheduled to start operation in mid-July.
Starting this year, a vending machine system has been introduced that automatically dispenses one bottle every 15 seconds. This improvement aims to prevent a few users from taking multiple bottles, thereby allowing more residents to benefit. The district's volunteer disaster prevention team regularly inspects the sites to monitor the condition of the refrigerators and the surrounding environment.
Junggu is implementing summer heat wave countermeasures until September 30 to protect the lives and safety of its residents. The district is operating 67 cooling shelters and safe accommodations, has greatly expanded heat mitigation facilities such as smart shade structures and cool roofs on senior center rooftops to lower building temperatures.
Additionally, visiting nurses check on households requiring intensive care to monitor residents' health, and a welfare check service using Internet of Things (IoT) devices is being provided in parallel to help protect those most vulnerable to heat waves.
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