The Seoul Metropolitan Government has stepped up its heat wave response — expanding cooling shelters, deploying water-spraying vehicles and strengthening protections for vulnerable residents — after a heat wave alert was extended to all parts of the city Sunday.
The Korea Meteorological Administration upgraded northwestern Seoul's heat wave advisory to a full heat wave alert at 11 a.m. Sunday, according to Yonhap. The rest of the city — the southeastern, southwestern and northeastern zones — had already been under a heat wave alert since July 29, bringing the entire capital under the highest-level warning.
A tropical night advisory has also been in effect across Seoul since July 24, now in its ninth consecutive day. A heat wave advisory is issued when the daily maximum apparent temperature is forecast to exceed 33 degrees Celsius for two or more days; a tropical night advisory is issued when the overnight low is expected to stay above 26 C for at least one day.
As the heat wave drags on, the city has intensified emergency operations and is mobilizing resources across every sector. Seoul is maintaining its heat wave crisis alert at the "Alert" level — the second of four stages — and has expanded its integrated heat wave support operations center to eight teams to carry out prevention measures.
The city is focusing particularly on protecting vulnerable groups, including homeless people and residents of low-income single-room housing, managing the safety of outdoor workers and keeping cooling shelters running. Emergency sleeping spaces have been provided to 287 homeless people on the streets to help them escape the tropical nights, with counseling and patrol services also reinforced. Safety checks on residents of low-income single-room housing have been strengthened, as have home visits and phone check-ins for people with disabilities and chronic illnesses.
To help residents escape the midday heat, the city has designated 4,094 locations — including community service centers, senior centers and welfare facilities — as official cooling shelters. It is also operating 414 climate-companion shelters at convenience stores and banks, 62 emergency evacuation sites at public facilities, 30 rest spaces for mobile workers and 5,249 heat-reduction facilities.
In addition, the city has activated 187 cooling-fog mist systems and 14 water-cooled road sections in the urban core, and has deployed street-cleaning trucks to spray water on major roads to bring down the heat.
The city also sent an emergency text alert to all Seoul residents at around 10:20 a.m. Sunday, urging them to avoid outdoor activities and drink plenty of water.
"As the heat wave prolongs, the risk of heat-related illness and other harm to residents is growing," said Choe Jin-seok, director of Seoul's disaster and safety management office. "We will keep our response systems fully operational on the ground, with the safety and lives of citizens as our top priority."
woo@heraldcorp.com
