Man in His 50s Regains Daily Life After 10 Years Living in Scrapped Car Thanks to Jeju City Support

A man in his 50s who had been living alone in a scrapped car for 10 years has regained his daily life thanks to support from Jeju City.

Passenger car that Mr. A has lived with for 10 years. Jeju City, Yonhap News

On the 30th, Jeju City announced that it had provided customized welfare services to a man in his 50s, referred to as Mr. A, who had been living in a vehicle at the level of a scrapped car for an extended period and was considered missing from the resident registry. The city implemented integrated case management to ensure his safe life within the local community.

About 10 years ago, Mr. A moved from Daejeon to Jeju and had been living alone without registering his address, residing in a car parked near Samyang Beach in Jeju City. When Jeju City first discovered Mr. A in 2018, his vehicle was already severely corroded and no longer functional. Although there were serious concerns about his health and safety, Mr. A refused all welfare support from the city. As a result, Jeju City, in cooperation with the local community center, the local police precinct, and the Hope Sharing Comprehensive Support Center, continued to monitor and counsel Mr. A for about eight years.

Last month, Mr. A finally expressed his willingness to accept help. Jeju City then initiated intensive case management, securing a studio apartment for him, providing monthly rent support, opening a mobile phone account, assisting with applications for basic livelihood security benefits and address registration, arranging for the scrapping and deregistration of his vehicle, and offering Jejugachidolbom meal boxes to help him restore his daily life. Mr. A had suffered from severe economic hardship as well as depression and anxiety disorders after living alone in his car for such a long time. Accordingly, Jeju City is also providing medical support in cooperation with Jeju Medical Center's lonely death prevention program.

Han Youngmi, head of the Community Welfare Division of Jeju City, stated, "Through this integrated case management based on public-private cooperation, a single-person household who had been isolated for a long time can now continue to live safely and stably within the local community. We will continue to prevent lonely deaths among single-person households through ongoing monitoring and will actively provide customized welfare services in the future."