Gyeongnam Office of Education Provides Emergency Psychological Support After Changwon Stabbing Incident Involving Student Deaths

The Gyeongnam Office of Education has expressed its condolences and initiated emergency psychological support following the recent stabbing incident at a motel in Changwon on December 3, in which local middle school students lost their lives or were seriously injured.

On December 4, the Office released a statement saying, "We extend our deepest sympathies to the victims and their families, and we sincerely hope for the swift recovery of the student who was seriously injured."

The statement also described the incident as "a very serious social issue in which young people were exposed to unexpected violence and lost their lives," adding, "The Office of Education recognizes the gravity of the situation."

Gyeongnam Office of Education. Photo by Se-ryeong Lee

Immediately after the incident, the Office activated its emergency reporting system, is actively cooperating with the police investigation together with the relevant local education support office, and is working to ascertain the facts.

Additionally, supervisors from the main office, staff from the local education support office, and Wee Center experts were urgently dispatched to the schools attended by the victims to discuss measures to prevent secondary harm and ensure stable educational activities in the aftermath of the incident.

A 'School Emergency Psychological Support Team' has been deployed to the affected school to provide trauma prevention and psychological and emotional treatment programs for students and staff, and a 'special counseling room' is also being operated.

The Office of Education plans to strengthen measures to prevent crimes against students and ensure their safety in cooperation with the police and local governments going forward.

In particular, the Office intends to request cooperation from lodging businesses and multi-use facilities to protect young people.

The Office emphasized that the entire community must be involved in preventing crimes against students.

An official from the Office stated, "We will do our utmost to establish thorough and effective measures to prevent recurrence, prioritizing the life and safety of each and every student above all else."

Previously, on December 3, a man in his 20s stabbed three local male and female middle school students with a knife at a motel in Hapseong-dong, Masan Hoewon-gu, Changwon, Gyeongnam, before falling from the motel window himself. As a result of this incident, the man in his 20s and two of the middle school students died, while one middle school student remains in critical condition.