Kim Dong-yeon, "Don't Distinguish Between Provincial, Local, and National Funds for Disaster Relief—Provide Rapid Support"

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Kim Gapdong] Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon, who visited the site of the artillery shell misdirection accident in Pocheon City, instructed officials to "not distinguish between provincial, local, and national funds and proactively support disaster recovery by standing in the position of residents."

The governor visited the village of Nogok-ri, Idong-myeon, Pocheon City, where the artillery shell misdirection accident occurred, and gave on-site orders to swiftly implement the relocation of disaster victims, the provision of emergency living stability funds, and medical support for the injured, so that residents can quickly return to their normal lives.

After arriving at the accident site, Governor Kim received a situational briefing and checked and verified whether the injured were in life-threatening condition, whether there was a risk of additional explosions, and whether there were any delays in relocation plans for residents, and toured the village thoroughly.

In the process, he instructed Vice Governor Oh Seok for Administration to take measures to deploy budgets as quickly as possible to support residents' disaster recovery, and specifically urged attention to psychological support for the residents.

In particular, regarding precision safety inspections of residences and facilities that the province plans to conduct, Governor Kim instructed a "full-scale safety inspection," saying "(not limited to affected households) conduct comprehensive safety inspections."

After touring the village, Governor Kim encouraged the efforts of firefighters engaged in accident recovery and provincial government officials conducting door-to-door visits to survey damage, then held a meeting to listen to residents' voices.

At the meeting, Governor Kim stated, "This is incomprehensible, something unheard of," adding, "I will firmly tell (the central government and military authorities) to thoroughly investigate the cause of the accident and clarify the truth clearly so that even the slightest suspicion remains."

Village residents urged, calling this incident a "disaster," and asked for help so that the accident area could be proclaimed a "special disaster zone."

In response, Governor Kim Dong-yeon told the Vice Minister of Interior and Safety in attendance at the meeting, "Although this accident differs from natural disasters and may not meet the requirements for declaring a special disaster zone, wasn't it the state that caused the accident in the first place? Please give it active consideration. We will make an official request (in addition to this verbal request)," immediately accepting residents' demands and conveying the position to the central government.

The Interior Ministry stated, "We will give it active consideration."