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Busan Metropolitan City and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety Conduct the 3rd READY Korea 2025 Drill to Review the Pan-Governmental Crowd Disaster Response System

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced that on the 24th, at 2 p.m., it conducted the “3rd READY Korea 2025 Drill” jointly with 25 related organizations at Gangseo Sports Park.

The READY Korea Drill is a training program designed to check the disaster response system between the public and private sectors in preparation for large-scale and complex disasters caused by potential risks such as climate crises and aging urban infrastructure.
(*READY: Real event Exercise with Aspiration and Desire for safetY)

This drill assumed a scenario in which simultaneous explosions, fires, and crowd accidents occurred at a concert venue during the opening ceremony of a regional festival. The timing was chosen in consideration of the fall season, when Busan hosts large-scale events such as the National (Disabled) Sports Festival and the Busan Fireworks Festival, along with many local festivals and performances.

In particular, since “crowd crush accidents” were newly classified as a type of disaster on July 16, 2024, this exercise marked the first pan-government joint drill designed to prepare for such accidents. The drill focused on thoroughly reviewing the response system and capabilities of each organization in the event of a crowd disaster.
※ The revised Enforcement Decree of the Disaster and Safety Act (to take effect on October 2, 2025) assigns local government heads the responsibility to implement disaster prevention measures in cases of large gatherings, including safety inspections, issuing safety orders, recommending suspension of events, and dispersal of crowds.

The drill scenario began with an explosion and fire breaking out at a concert venue during a festival opening ceremony. As spectators attempted to evacuate en masse, severe congestion ensued.

Upon detecting the explosion, concert staff reported the incident to the police and fire authorities and deployed on-site personnel to assist evacuation. Police and fire first responders quickly arrived at the scene to begin initial fire suppression and maintain order.

Busan Metropolitan City immediately instructed related organizations to mobilize all available resources for spectator evacuation, rescue operations, and fire suppression. After convening a situation assessment meeting, the City established the Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters to take charge of the response.

As the fire spread due to flammable materials and malfunctioning ventilation systems that prevented smoke from escaping, several exits became blocked. Crowds attempting to escape surged toward limited exits, resulting in casualties.

In response, an Emergency Response Control Team (Gangseo Fire Station), an On-Site Emergency Medical Center (Gangseo Community Health Center), and an Integrated Support Headquarters (Gangseo District Office) were set up. After an emergency assessment meeting, the City activated the Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters for an all-out response.

The head of the Emergency Response Control Team (Chief of Gangseo Fire Station) directed firefighting and rescue operations on-site. As casualties increased, Busan Metropolitan City collaborated with the Ministry of Health and Welfare to monitor hospital bed availability in real time and transfer patients accordingly.

As the fire rapidly spread throughout the venue, additional fatalities occurred due to crush injuries during evacuation, while some spectators became isolated on external terraces with no escape routes.

To conduct search and rescue operations, a special unit from the Army’s 53rd Division was deployed. The Busan Fire and Disaster Headquarters and Gangseo Fire Station employed helicopters for aerial firefighting, rescue dogs, and drones to continue fire suppression and detailed search efforts.

As a result of the fire and crowd crush accident, numerous critical patients emerged. Disaster base hospitals secured additional beds. The police deployed helicopters to rescue the isolated and secured emergency traffic lanes to facilitate patient transfers.

After the fire was eventually extinguished, with the venue stage and interior completely burned, total casualties were confirmed at 100 (10 dead and 90 injured) due to crowd crushes, fire-related suffocation, and other causes.

Busan Metropolitan City and Gangseo District designated one-on-one public officials for funeral arrangements, victim and family support, and implemented urgent measures such as restoring electricity and communications and conducting building safety inspections.

The National Police Agency assisted with support for foreign victims and the identification of the deceased. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety, upon the recommendation of the Local Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, reviewed declaring the site a special disaster zone to expedite recovery.

In conjunction with the field drill, the City’s Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters conducted a tabletop exercise to review disaster response manuals. According to these manuals, each functional working group within the Headquarters carried out training based on its assigned duties, including situation reception, communication, and reporting; holding assessment meetings; activating the Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters; and discussing problems and solutions identified during the exercise.

Vice Mayor for Administrative Affairs Lee Jun-seung stated, “Through this READY Korea drill, we were able to strengthen our practical response capabilities for crowd accidents caused by fires and reexamine inter-agency cooperation systems. Busan Metropolitan City will continue to conduct training for large-scale and complex disaster scenarios to enhance disaster response capacity and ensure the safety of our citizens.”