Oh Sehoon Orders "Minimize Icy Sections"
Following the heavy snowfall on December 4, roads throughout Seoul have frozen, prompting the Seoul Metropolitan Government to make all-out efforts to remove remaining snow and ice.
On December 5, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that, as of 9:30 a.m. that day, the snow removal completion rate for side streets and sidewalks in each district had surpassed 90%.
Vehicles are slowing down on a side street in Jung-gu, Seoul, where snow removal efforts were insufficient, as roads across downtown Seoul froze overnight due to subzero temperatures following heavy snowfall the previous day in the metropolitan area on the 5th. December 5, 2025. Photo by Yoon Dongju
While on an overseas business trip, Mayor Oh Sehoon received a report on the overnight snow removal operations from Deputy Mayor for Administrative Affairs Kim Seongbo and instructed, "Do everything possible to minimize icy sections and prevent inconvenience for citizens." Before departing for his trip the previous day, Mayor Oh had also directed the relevant departments to "thoroughly prepare snow removal measures in anticipation of the forecasted heavy snowfall."
Starting at 2 p.m. on December 4, the city activated its Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, with Deputy Mayor Kim serving as the control tower, and maintained an emergency response posture.
After issuing Level 1 emergency snow removal operations throughout Seoul, the city began its response. The Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, led by Deputy Mayor Kim, was also activated and maintained emergency readiness. A total of 5,052 personnel and 1,145 pieces of equipment were mobilized, and snow-melting agents were preemptively spread on urban expressways such as Olympic-daero, Gangbyeonbuk-ro, and Naebu Expressway, as well as major arterial roads like Jongno and Gangnam-daero, between 5 and 6 p.m. the previous day.
At 11:30 p.m. the previous day, all staff members from six road management offices and the Seoul Facilities Corporation involved in snow removal were mobilized, with an additional 215 personnel deployed for snow clearing operations.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government explained, "Despite launching our initial response five hours ahead of the snowfall forecast, a large amount of snow fell in a short period, and some main roads experienced congestion and closures, which prevented the pre-spread snow-melting agents from being properly activated by vehicle traffic as intended. This resulted in inconvenience for citizens." The city also cited the rapid drop in temperatures after the snowfall, which caused roads to freeze quickly, as a major contributing factor.
To minimize inconvenience for citizens commuting by public transportation on the morning of December 5, the city increased subway operations by 20 runs and extended the intensive bus dispatch period for the morning commute by 30 minutes.
All subway lines 1 through 8, Line 9, Sillim Line, Ui-Sinseol Line, and all city bus routes extended their peak-hour intensive dispatch by 30 minutes during the morning commute to prevent congestion and inconvenience for citizens.
The city plans to continue snow removal operations and patrols for icy sections on side streets and pedestrian areas.
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