Seocho District Receives Minister of the Interior and Safety Award for AI Flood Measurement and Warning System

Recognized for Two Consecutive Years in CCTV Best Practices
Establishing a Real-Time Monitoring and Automated Warning System in Flood-Prone Areas

Seocho District in Seoul (headed by District Chief Jun Sungsoo) announced on September 6 that it received an Excellence Award, including the Minister of the Interior and Safety Award, at the “2026 Local Government CCTV Best Practices” competition organized by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, for its “AI Flood Measurement and Warning System.” This achievement comes after winning the Grand Prize at last year’s Integrated CCTV Control Center Best Practices Competition, marking the second consecutive year that the district has been recognized for its use of CCTV and contributions to the smart disaster safety sector.

The "AI Flood Measurement and Warning System" detects risk signs and displays laser vehicle warnings on two-lane roads. Provided by Seocho District.

The “AI Flood Measurement and Warning System” is an AI-based intelligent urban safety network established to respond quickly to flood damage caused by sudden torrential downpours and localized heavy rainfall. The system was developed to build a precise and standardized automatic response framework that supplements traditional visual monitoring-based disaster response, following incidents in 2022—such as vehicle isolation and manhole cover dislodgement around Gangnam Station—caused by record-breaking rainfall.

This system applies Vision AI technology to public CCTVs installed in flood-prone areas, enabling 24/7 year-round real-time monitoring and analysis of road and river flooding. For road sections, it calculates flood depth and water flow using standard information such as vehicle tire wheels and manhole cover specifications. For river sections, it employs virtual reference water gauges to simultaneously measure both water level and flow velocity.

If the calculated flood indicators exceed threshold values, the system immediately notifies responsible personnel and automatically operates onsite safety facilities. In areas at risk of flooding, a laser barrier is activated to control vehicle entry, and if pedestrian hazards such as manhole cover dislodgement are detected, floor projection warning messages using gobo lighting are displayed to proactively prevent accidents.

Currently, Seocho District operates a total of 6,434 CCTVs. Out of 4,158 crime prevention CCTVs directly linked to resident safety, 2,053 units (49.4%) are equipped with AI selective monitoring capabilities, thereby enhancing control efficiency and field responsiveness.

To reduce the burden of server expansion and system setup costs while further improving monitoring efficiency, Seocho District began full operation of “Edge AI CCTV” as of April. This system analyzes footage in real time at the camera itself to detect hazardous situations and transmits only necessary information to the control center. Compared to the previous method of bulk video analysis at a central server, it reduces the need for server expansion and enhances selective monitoring efficiency.

In the first half of this year, the district installed 33 Edge AI CCTVs as a priority. In the second half, it plans to add 163 additional units—focusing on areas vulnerable to crime—bringing the total to 196 Edge AI CCTVs by the end of the year.

District Chief Jun Sungsoo stated, “This award is the result of our efforts to advance the golden time of resident safety in everyday life by converging CCTV and AI technology. Moving forward, we will continue to develop a smart safety system that promptly detects and responds to disaster and safety risks, working to realize a ‘Safe City Seocho’ that protects residents’ lives and property.”

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