Go Beom-seok’s First Official Move as Seoul Police Chief: Inspection of Fireworks Festival Site; 4,700 Officers to Be Deployed

[Financial News] Go Beom-seok, chief of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, inspected safety conditions at the site of the Seoul International Fireworks Festival 2026, which will be held on the 5th in the areas around Yeouido and Ichon Hangang Park in Seoul. It was his first official move since taking office.
According to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, this year’s fireworks festival will include a pre-event ceremony on the eve of the main event, unlike in previous years. The police plan to deploy about 4,700 officers from 28 teams over the two days, including the pre-event ceremony. Because the pre-event ceremony will take place on a weekday evening, officers will be stationed on roads around the venue, at subway stations and along major entrances and exits to Hangang Park to prevent safety incidents amid the possible simultaneous influx of commuters and spectators.
Given that crowds surged toward subway stations during last year’s dispersal, two senior mobile-unit commanders at the superintendent level will be stationed on the eastern and western sides of the southern end of Yeouidong-ro this year. Spectators will be encouraged to disperse toward National Assembly Station, Yeouido Station, Saetgang Station, Daebang Station and Singil Station, among others.
Yeouinaru Station on Subway Line 5, where the largest crowds are expected on the day of the event, will have trains pass through without stopping from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
A Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency official said, "Heavy crowds and traffic congestion are expected around the venue, so please use public transportation whenever possible. To ensure that citizens can return home safely on the day of the event, we ask that you actively cooperate with the directions and guidance of police officers and safety personnel at the site."

[email protected] Seo Ji-yoon Reporter