Police to deploy 7,800 personnel nationwide for crowd safety during Halloween
Police will deploy around 7,800 personnel across the nation to manage crowds celebrating Halloween over the weekend, officials said Friday, as the country prepares for its fourth Halloween since the deadly 2022 Itaewon crowd crush. The National Police Agency (NPA) said it will operate a special safety management period from Friday to Sunday. During the period, riot police, regional patrol teams…
Police plan to deploy approximately 7,800 personnel nationwide during the Halloween weekend to ensure crowd safety, officials announced on Friday. This deployment marks the fourth Halloween in as many years since the tragic Itaewon crowd crush of 2022, which resulted in 159 deaths. The National Police Agency (NPA) has declared a special safety management period from Friday to Sunday to address potential crowd control challenges.
During this time, riot police, regional patrol teams, and detectives will be dispatched primarily to 28 key areas, with a focus on 14 locations in Seoul. The government aims to prevent a recurrence of the Itaewon tragedy, where a surge through a narrow alleyway led to the devastating loss of life.
To manage pedestrian traffic in narrow bottleneck areas, police will divide pedestrian flow and guide crowds to walk in a single direction. Should crowd density become dangerously high, police will restrict incoming traffic from the perimeter to create open space for people to disperse safely. The police will share real-time data with relevant agencies and dispatch officers immediately to scenes in case of any crowd-related reports.
Written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
