Seoul Mayor Oh Sehoon Inspects Hongdae Ahead of Halloween

Inspected 700-meter stretch from Club Street to Hongtong Street
Checked safety systems, including AI CCTV cameras and emergency bells

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon visited the Mapo-gu Hongdae Tourist Zone on Oct. 29, two days ahead of Halloween, to inspect the joint response system involving the city, district, police and fire authorities, as well as safety measures.

Seoul Mayor Oh Sehoon walks along Hongdae Street on the 29th ahead of Halloween, checking safety management in areas expected to see dense crowds. Seoul Metropolitan Government

The Seoul Metropolitan Government deployed 326 safety personnel to the Hongdae Tourist Zone this year. It also inspected safety facilities, including crowd-detection CCTV cameras and emergency bells, and began securing pedestrian space by restricting vehicle traffic.

The inspection was arranged in anticipation of large crowds gathering from the evening into the early morning, as Halloween falls on a weekend. During last year's Halloween period, up to 110,000 people gathered in the Hongdae Tourist Zone, a 34% increase from the previous year.

Mayor Oh visited the Mapo-gu Joint Situation Room and, together with the Mapo-gu deputy mayor, the chief of the Seoul Mapo Police Station and the chief of the Seoul Mapo Fire Station, reviewed preparations for responding to crowding, emergency contact networks and the joint response system.

He then walked about 700 meters from Hongdae Club Street (around 406 Seogyo-dong) to Hongtong Street (around 77 Eoull Madang-ro), inspecting pedestrian conditions and disaster-prevention facilities.

In particular, he reviewed plans to secure pedestrian paths by flexibly restricting one lane of Wausan-ro if crowds surge around Club Street, as well as how queues at club entrances are being managed.

He also checked the operating status of nine crowd-detection CCTV cameras installed at the site, the system for analyzing crowd density per unit area (m²), and the connection between emergency bells for urgent situations and the control room. In addition, he checked the operation of electronic signs displaying detour routes for each of the "Caution," "Alert" and "Serious" levels.

During this Halloween period, the Seoul Metropolitan Government will deploy a total of 326 people, including public officials and private-sector specialists, to the Hongdae Tourist Zone. It provided 55 million won from the city's Disaster Management Fund to the district to increase the number of specialists and strengthen pedestrian-flow management and patrols.

Restrictions will also be implemented in crowded areas across Seoul. The city designated the 10-day period from Oct. 23 to Nov. 1 as the "Halloween Special Measures Period" and deployed a total of 10,215 public- and private-sector personnel across 14 areas in 10 districts.

The city will monitor crowding using 361 AI crowd-detection CCTV cameras installed in 14 designated areas, real-time urban data and drones. If a dangerous situation arises, it plans to take immediate action, including having subway trains pass through stations without stopping, restricting access to station entrances and issuing emergency disaster text alerts.

"Safety should not be an event that receives brief attention only during a particular festival period; it should function as naturally as breathing in the daily lives of citizens," Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said. "We will fully mobilize advanced monitoring systems and our 24-hour joint on-site response network to prepare thoroughly to prevent safety incidents."

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