Vice Governor Park Jeong-ju: "We will do our best to prevent casualties, our top priority in disaster management."

Chungcheongnam-do Province and its 15 cities and counties held an emergency meeting to prepare for heavy rainfall, once again checking their natural disaster response system and progress.

The province announced that it held an "Emergency Meeting for Heavy Rain Preparedness (Local Area Network Video Conference) for Provinces and Cities/Counties" on the 16th at the provincial disaster situation room, presided over by Vice Governor Park Jeong-ju, with vice-heads of cities/counties in attendance.

The meeting proceeded with a review of current weather conditions and forecasts, sharing of heavy rain response plans for the province and individual cities/counties, followed by a comprehensive discussion.

The weather forecast for the Chungnam region anticipates 50-100mm or more of rain from this afternoon until the 17th, with some areas, such as the west coast and northern inland regions, possibly receiving over 200mm.

The west coast is expected to experience very heavy and significant rainfall of 30-50mm per hour from 12 PM today until 6 AM on the 17th, and inland areas from 6 PM today until 6 AM on the 17th.

The province and its cities/counties have inspected 17,647 vulnerable areas and facilities, including drainage facilities, landslide-prone areas (steep slopes), and areas prone to human casualties, in preparation for heavy rainfall.

Key safety measures completed include dredging, cleaning of storm drains, installation of tarpaulins, and deployment of water pumps in habitually flooded areas.

The province initiated its initial response at 8:30 AM and plans to proactively activate the provincial Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters according to weather advisories.

On-site, the Chungnam SAFEZONE will be activated to actively conduct pre-emptive evacuations before sunset, and safety partners will be utilized to assist the evacuation of vulnerable populations.

Vice Governor Park emphasized, "Please thoroughly implement flood prevention measures such as sewerage maintenance in habitually flooded areas, prevention of basement flooding, and landslide prevention in preparation for heavy rainfall." He added, "As the top priority in disaster management is the prevention of casualties, please establish a real-time information sharing and rapid response system tailored to on-site situations."