Heatwave hits South Korea, senior citizens ‘cool off’ at airport
SEOUL: As South Korea is hit by an extraordinary heatwave with temperatures recording record highs, Incheon International Airport here has turned into an unofficial ‘shelter’ for people wanting to escape the scorching weather, reported The Korea Herald.
Local media reports over the past week found senior citizens spending hours inside the terminal, playing games, sharing food supplies and resting on benches while enjoying the cool air conditioning.
The airport became the choice because it provides various facilities for free including air conditioning, seating, Wi-Fi, phone charging facilities and toilets.
More interestingly, South Korean citizens aged 65 and above can use the underground train service without having to pay fares.
Data from the Airport Railway Service shows the number of elderly passengers has increased in recent years.
Those aged 65 and above recorded 1.65 million trips last July, an increase of seven percent compared to the same month last year and more than 20 percent compared to July 2024.
However, the data does not show how many of those trips were made specifically by senior citizens seeking shelter from the heatwave.
The popularity of the airport, however, raises questions over whether the heatwave protection measures provided by the government truly reach those in need.
Local media also highlighted the lack of awareness among senior citizens regarding heat shelters provided by local authorities, besides the issue of fees charged at most of those locations.
About 70 percent of the 4,034 heat shelters operated by Seoul operate on a membership basis, while only 202 shelters are publicly announced for public use.
In a similar development, homeless individuals have also been detected making Incheon Airport a shelter throughout the extreme hot weather, thus adding challenges to the airport management.
Incheon Airport Operations Service, which manages operations at the airport, classifies the duration of homeless stays into two categories: short-term and long-term. Long-term stays are defined as a period of two weeks or more.
AFP