Pyeongchang-gun, home to the 2018 Winter Olympics, sent volunteers to the flood-stricken city of Geoje in South Gyeongsang Province to help with disaster recovery.
The volunteers were staff members of the Pyeongchang-gun Facilities Management Corporation. According to the corporation, the employees traveled to Geoje — designated a special disaster zone — on Wednesday to carry out volunteer recovery work.
The effort was organized in response to the severe damage Geoje sustained from torrential rain that fell Aug. 15 through 19, accumulating 968.1 millimeters — with a peak hourly rate of 124.5 millimeters — and triggering landslides, flooding of homes and traditional markets, and damage to roads and water infrastructure.
Nine members of the corporation's volunteer unit, the Huimang Saemi Service Corps, including Chairman Choi Sun-cheol, worked alongside Geoje city officials at flood-damaged farms in Dunduk-myeon, Geoje.
The volunteers helped farmers clear flood debris, remove sediment and wreckage from inundated fields, sort through waterlogged farm equipment, and clean up the surrounding areas. Before departing and again before beginning work, the team conducted two rounds of safety training, designated an on-site safety officer, and restricted entry to hazardous areas — all in keeping with a zero-accident policy.
The initiative went beyond simple disaster relief, with the corporation deliberately linking recovery support to local economic revitalization. During their stay, the volunteers ate and lodged at businesses within Geoje and visited a traditional market damaged by flooding, channeling their spending toward helping local commerce recover.
"Practicing solidarity and mutual support between regions in times of disaster is the social responsibility of a public institution," Chairman Choi said. He added that the corporation would establish a "recovery and mutual-benefit social contribution" model — combining disaster recovery support with local spending — as a standard approach to be applied in future disasters as well.
The corporation said it intends to continue fulfilling its social responsibilities as a steadfast neighbor and partner in regional cooperation, ready to extend a helping hand whenever communities face hardship.
The government designated Geoje a special disaster zone on Aug. 21.
abc@heraldcorp.com
