Prime Minister Han Seong-sook on the 2nd ordered government ministries and local governments to mount an emergency response as drought damage is feared in some regions due to worsening heat wave conditions.
Han told the Ministry of the Interior and Safety to review how each ministry and local government is implementing heat wave measures and to coordinate and support a whole-of-government response. She also told local governments to continuously inspect sites to ensure there are no problems operating cooling centers and heat mitigation facilities.
She also emphasized protecting vulnerable groups. She instructed the Ministry of Health and Welfare to check the operation of air conditioning at senior centers and shelters used by people such as seniors living alone and residents of tiny-room housing, and to check in on them frequently.
She told the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs to strengthen village broadcasts urging restraint from strenuous rice paddy and field work, given the high number of older farmers who die while working outdoors, and to inspect sites together with local governments. She asked the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) to guide and inspect compliance with heat wave safety rules at logistics centers and construction sites and whether work stoppages are carried out during the hottest hours.
She told the agriculture ministry and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries to swiftly support the operation of cooling devices and high-water-temperature response equipment to prevent deaths of livestock and farmed fish. She instructed the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment to frequently check the power reserve margin in preparation for a surge in cooling demand, and to closely manage the status of water storage in dams and reservoirs and the supply of domestic and industrial water in drought-prone areas.