Sokcho City Protects Citizens' Health and Safety with Swift Heatwave Measures

Special Grant of 97.6 Million Won Secured Early
Smart Canopies to Be Installed Without Delay
131 "Cooling Shelters" Operating as Urban Oases

Sokcho City in Gangwon Province has established a comprehensive heatwave response plan to protect the lives and safety of its citizens, launching a proactive response to the unusually early and intense heat experienced this year.

Fixed Shade Installation. Provided by Sokcho City

With the average summer temperature in Sokcho steadily increasing over the past 10 years and the number of days with extreme heat expected to rise again this year, the city aims to build an active and meticulous disaster preparedness system tailored to changing climate conditions.

First, in line with the government’s revised heatwave response system, Sokcho has upgraded its previous two-stage alert system to a three-stage framework—advisory, warning, and critical warning—to enhance on-site response capabilities. In addition, to address the risk of tropical nights that threaten citizens' health, especially in coastal areas, the city has introduced a new set of response standards for tropical night advisories. A dedicated heatwave response team, consisting of 12 departments centered around the Disaster and Safety Division, has been activated to closely monitor vulnerable groups such as outdoor construction workers, elderly field laborers, and seniors living alone.

The main respite spaces for citizens to escape the heat, known as cooling shelters, have been systematically designated and managed at a total of 131 locations throughout the city. These shelters include 58 senior centers mainly used by the elderly, 51 convenience stores with high public accessibility, 10 financial institutions, 8 neighborhood community centers, 3 post offices, and 1 outdoor pavilion, all of which will be actively operated and promoted.

The city plans to supply heatwave prevention supplies to each facility and assign responsible managers to conduct regular inspections, ensuring that citizens can always rest in comfort.

To expand field-oriented cooling infrastructure that citizens can directly benefit from, Sokcho will utilize a special disaster and safety grant secured in advance. The city has already obtained the full 97.6 million won special grant, funded at the provincial level, and will promptly move forward with its projects. The funds will be used to install or replace smart canopies at six key locations with high pedestrian traffic, including the crosswalk at Expo Park in Joyang-dong, the area in front of Cheongcho Police Substation, and the traffic island in front of Kumho-dong Hillstate, providing shaded rest areas to help citizens escape the scorching urban sun.

Furthermore, to ensure the safety of vulnerable groups such as those with mobility challenges or poor cooling environments, the city will quickly purchase and distribute customized cooling items, including portable fans. All signage at aging cooling shelters will be completely repaired or replaced for greater convenience, and preventive items such as handheld fans and bottled water, along with guidelines for heatwave response, will be distributed directly on-site to encourage citizens to protect their own health. These measures will be accompanied by broad public awareness campaigns.

A Sokcho City official stated, "As the frequency and intensity of summer heatwaves increase due to climate change, what matters most is implementing countermeasures ahead of time so that citizens are protected before any damage occurs. Using the secured special grant as a catalyst, we will thoroughly manage all 131 cooling shelters and meticulously expand community-based heatwave mitigation facilities to fully operate the city’s heatwave response measures and minimize heat-related damage this summer."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.