[Security News] Seoul, Reborn as a Strong City Against Earthquake
Seoul, Reborn as a Strong City Against Earthquake
After the earthquakes that struck Gyeongju and surrounding areas, the Seoul Metropolitan Government recognized that the Korean peninsula is no longer in an earthquake-safe zone. To build a strong Seoul against earthquakes, Seoul is concentrating all of the city’s capacity on carrying out comprehensive measures against earthquakes.These comprehensive measures against earthquakes have drastically reinforced the “Comprehensive Earthquake Disaster Prevention Plan” established in June 2016. The main contents of the new measures are ▲ enhanced earthquake resistance for the buildings most frequently used by citizens ▲ improved distribution system of earthquake occurrence information ▲ establishment of earthquake acceleration measuring equipment and an integrated system ▲ and expanded experimental training and education.
A seismic capacity assessment of 251 out of 1,334 public buildings under the jurisdiction of the city, in which seismic capacity has not yet been built, will be completed by 2017. In addition, according to the assessment results, seismic reinforcement will be swiftly conducted through annual plans. For the subway, which is heavily used by citizens, reinforcement work of 53.2 ㎞ required for seismic reinforcement has been under way in stages since March, 2013, to meet the seismic guideline (a 6.3-magnitude earthquake). The reinforcement work will be completed by 2010. In addition, seismic reinforcement work for road facilities, such as bridges and underground roadways, which currently have 82% earthquake resistance, will be completed by 2019.
The installment of “earthquake acceleration measuring equipment”, which is currently installed at 13 facilities including Seoul City Hall, will be expanded. This means that when an earthquake occurs, seismic vibrations can be detected and damages analyzed. Analysis of the measured data can be utilized to study seismic characteristics.
To provide citizens with disaster related information, such as citizen safety guidelines specialized for Seoul, the tentatively-named “Seoul Safety App” will be introduced by the first half of 2017. If the system is established, users will be able to easily locate necessary facilities on a map in the event of a disaster, such as citizen shelters or medical supply facilities.