Yongsan District and Mapo District in Seoul, which oversee areas such as Itaewon and in front of Hongdae where crowds are expected to gather during the Halloween festival period, announced crowd control measures.
Yongsan District said on the 24th that it will fully implement the 2025 Halloween safety management plan, centered on a "four-level crowd congestion management system." Yongsan District set up the plan through three meetings since September with Yongsan Police Station, Yongsan Fire Station, Seoul Metro, the 3537th Unit, and the Itaewon Merchants Volunteer Corps.
The special countermeasure period runs from this day, when crowds are expected to gather, through Nov. 2. A total of about 1,300 safety management personnel will be deployed on site.
The four-level crowd congestion criteria were created to reflect the characteristics of Itaewon's World Food Culture Street. Crowd density is divided into four levels: ▲ smooth walking ▲ caution while walking ▲ congested ▲ very congested.
At the "caution while walking" level, right-side walking will be guided in some sections. At the "congested" level, exits 1 and 2 and exits 3 and 4 at Itaewon Station will be separated by direction to adjust the flow of people. At the "very congested" level, strong measures such as sending disaster alert texts, recommending crowd dispersal, and having trains pass through Itaewon Station without stopping will be considered.
Crowd density will be analyzed in real time using intelligent CCTV. At the joint situation room near World Food Culture Street, CCTV data, the Yongsan real-time smart map, and the number of people getting off at Itaewon Station by time slot will be combined to quickly decide stage-by-stage responses.
Mapo District, together with Mapo Police Station and Mapo Fire Station, will begin Halloween preparedness safety management from this day through Nov. 1 on Red Road in front of Hongdae.
During the safety management period, Mapo District will set up an on-site situation room at Red Road R4 and, together with police and fire authorities, carry out step-by-step crowd control and traffic restrictions.
During this period, on-site inspections and safety campaigns will be conducted daily from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. the following day at Club Street, exit 9 of Hongik Univ. Station, and Red Road R3–R5. Mapo District plans to deploy 226 district office officials, 120 safety personnel, and 270 members from private organizations over nine days.
They will also monitor the on-site situation 24 hours a day via CCTV. In particular, they plan to use the "AI crowd density analysis system" installed at nine crowd-dense locations to analyze dangerous situations and, depending on circumstances, broadcast warning messages and voice guidance. Five disaster text display boards at key points on Red Road will also rapidly disseminate emergency disaster texts and multi-crowd behavior guidelines so they can be easily checked from a distance.
On Sept. 18, Mapo District discussed the safety management plan with eight agencies, including Mapo Police Station, Mapo Fire Station, and Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO). On the 1st, it reviewed the safety management plan, and from the 10th through the previous day, it inspected electrical and fire facilities in front of Hongdae, safety fences, and emergency evacuation routes.