Police are sharply increasing deployments ahead of Halloween to prepare for dense crowds.
Seoul's Gwanak Police Station said on the 23rd that it is conducting a special safety operation through Nov. 1 to step up patrols at major gathering spots in its jurisdiction. The station has designated areas around four subway stations, including Sillim Station and Seoul National University Station, as priority management zones and will deploy officers at 35 locations where crowds are expected.
For Oct. 31, Halloween itself, the station expects emergency calls to the 112 police hotline to rise more than 30% from normal levels and plans to secure staffing equivalent to emergency duty. At Sillim Station and Sharosu-gil, which the Ministry of the Interior and Safety has designated as Halloween safety zones, the station will deploy 1.5 times as many officers as under the existing special safety operation.
From Oct. 22 through Nov. 1, police will conduct intensive inspections of abandoned hazardous objects, narrow passages that impede movement, damaged roads and aging railings. "With Halloween falling on a Saturday this year, demand for public safety services is expected to surge," Gwanak Police Station chief Yang Seung-ho said. "We will concentrate our capabilities and work closely with related agencies to protect the lives and peaceful daily routines of the public."