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Busan Metropolitan City Conducts Emergency On-Site Inspections to Prepare for Cold Wave, Mobilizing All-Out Efforts to Protect the Homeless and Other Vulnerable Groups

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Busan Metropolitan City, led by Mayor Park Heong-joon, announced that it is 추진ing a variety of support measures to protect groups vulnerable to cold waves, including the operation of a “Joint Response Team for the Homeless,” dedicated on-site response teams, emergency shelters, and emergency relief rooms.

The “Joint Response Team for the Homeless” consists of officials from the city, district and county offices, the police, the fire department, and homeless support facilities. The dedicated on-site response teams, formed to strengthen health management for people experiencing homelessness on the streets, consist of three teams with a total of 16 personnel and are in operation for five months, from November last year through March this year.

In addition, to ensure an immediate response to emergencies involving people experiencing homelessness during the winter season, the city continues to operate an on-site response system during the cold wave period, including the operation of emergency shelters, emergency relief rooms linked with nearby lodging facilities, support for temporary housing expenses such as monthly room rental fees at gosiwon and transportation costs for up to three months, and free medical expense support for homeless individuals requiring hospital treatment.

In response to weather forecasts predicting that the cold wave would peak this week, the city conducted emergency on-site inspections last night (January 21) to secure the safety of cold wave–vulnerable groups, including people experiencing homelessness on the streets and residents of jjokbang housing.

During the inspection, the city visited major facilities such as homeless comprehensive support centers and jjokbang counseling centers to confirm that shelter operations and meal services were running smoothly, and carried out an intensive review of on-street protection conditions for people experiencing homelessness.

At the same time, the city strengthened nighttime patrols (outreach activities) to guide homeless individuals exposed to the cold so that they could immediately use emergency shelters and emergency relief rooms.

Meanwhile, the city operates three homeless comprehensive support centers and two jjokbang counseling centers as shelters. In particular, the Busan Hope Dream Center located in Jwacheon-dong provides free meals twice a day (lunch and dinner) every day without holidays, serving as a basic care hub for groups vulnerable to cold waves.

Jeong Tae-gi, Director General of the city’s Social Welfare Bureau, stated, “We will do our utmost to ensure that people experiencing homelessness on the streets and residents of jjokbang housing do not face difficulties in their daily lives due to the sudden cold wave, and that they can truly feel they are part of a warm community,” adding, “We will also take meticulous care to ensure that other vulnerable groups, including elderly people living alone, can safely get through this cold spell.”