“They left the chicken they had been eating on the mat and took off”... What remained on the Han River after 1 million people came to watch the fireworks

[Financial News] More than ten eight-ton truckloads of trash were left around Yeouido Hangang Park after the Seoul International Fireworks Festival ended.
According to News1 on the 7th, more than 1 million people, according to an estimate by the organizer, Hanwha Group, and 340,000 people, according to police estimates, attended the festival held on the 5th.
After the crowds left, mats and leftover food remained where they had been sitting. In many cases, recyclable waste and food waste had been mixed together without being separated.
On the day of the festival, about 1,200 Hanwha Group employee volunteers worked late into the night to collect the waste, but they were unable to finish cleaning up the site.
About 100 officials from the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Future Hangang Headquarters and outside contractors also worked through the night after the festival ended, continuing until the following morning. More than ten eight-ton truckloads of waste were collected in the Yeouido area alone.
The following day, about 50 members of World Vision donor communities Orange Farm and Rounders Club walked from Mapo Bridge to Wonhyo Bridge while collecting trash.
A Future Hangang Headquarters official said, “The amount of trash was similar to that left after last year’s festival.”
An official from a volunteer organization said that much of the waste had been hidden behind streetlights or trees, and that most of it consisted of items such as plastic bottles and mats that visitors could have taken home.
The lack of collection facilities was also cited as a problem. The large trash bins installed along the main routes were already about half full before the event began.
As the bins filled up during the event, trash piled up beside them. Some visitors reportedly left without taking the waste at their seats with them.
The festival ended without any major safety incidents. The Seoul Metropolitan Government established and operated a comprehensive safety headquarters for two days, with the participation of Hanwha Group, the police and fire departments, and the Yeongdeungpo, Yongsan, Dongjak, and Mapo district offices.
The comprehensive safety headquarters deployed 6,800 personnel to manage safety and maintain order. It also increased equipment, including safety fences, by 20% from the previous year.

[email protected] Minseo Seong Reporter