Yeongdeok-gun to deploy 120 wildfire watchers through May next year

Yeongdeok-gun in North Gyeongsang Province plans to deploy 120 wildfire watchers to vulnerable areas across the county through May next year, bolstering prevention and early response efforts with drones and closed-circuit television cameras, the county announced Friday.

To mark the initiative, Yeongdeok-gun held a launch ceremony for its 2026–2027 wildfire suppression and monitoring teams at the Yeongdeok County Community Center on Friday.

About 200 people attended, including Yeongdeok County Chief Jo Ju-hong, Yeongdeok County Council Chairman Jo Sang-jun and council members, Yeongdeok Fire Station Chief Park Chi-min, Yeongdeok National Forest Management Office Director Kim Yeong-cheol, and the wildfire watchers themselves.

The watchers will be stationed in high-risk fire zones to conduct prevention patrols and monitoring operations. Alongside on-the-ground patrols, the county will also run a real-time wildfire control system using drone stations and CCTV.

When a wildfire breaks out, the control system will be used to quickly assess the situation and relay confirmed information to response teams on the scene.

"We will not forget the lessons of last year's major wildfires," County Chief Jo said. "We will do our utmost to protect the lives and property of our residents through proactive prevention and swift response."