Citizens who held a 3-year-old child in their arms and moved the child to a safe place after the child got lost, wandered barefoot through alleys, and tried to run into the roadway were chosen as "child safety citizen heroes" and received awards. A store owner who performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on a customer who collapsed from cardiac arrest in a convenience store received a special award.
The Korean National Police Agency and BGF Retail said on the 9th that they held the "Child Safety Citizen Heroes Awards" to express gratitude to those who protected the safety of children and citizens.
This year's child safety citizen heroes are Park Han-gyun, 36, and Sim U-cheol, 36. The two, who are office workers and friends, received letters of appreciation from the Korean National Police Agency and prize money of 1 million won each from BGF Retail.
In October last year, they found a 3-year-old who had left home alone and was wandering barefoot through alleys. The child loitered nearby and even tried to run into the roadway, and the two immediately picked the child up, moved the child to a safe place, and called 112. They stayed by the child's side and protected the child until police arrived, preventing a situation that could have led to a major accident.
Police dispatched to the scene noted the child's short hair and canvassed nearby hair salons, and a customer there happened to provide the address of the child's residence, allowing the child to return safely to the family.
A "CU Angels Special Award" was also presented at the ceremony. The recipient was Kwon Dae-geun, owner of CU Gyeongju Chodang-gil. On the 2nd of last month, Kwon found a woman in her 30s who had collapsed from cardiac arrest inside the store and performed CPR. The woman regained consciousness after being handed over to paramedics and later completed treatment and was discharged, according to reports. Kwon received a certificate and 1 million won in prize money.
Meanwhile, since 2017, the Korean National Police Agency and BGF Retail have run the social contribution program "I CU," under which lost children as well as seniors with dementia and people with intellectual disabilities are temporarily protected at CU convenience stores before being handed over to police or family. The two organizations said a total of 215 people have safely returned to their families through this program to date.