Alternating monsoon rains and heat waves leave Seoul Station's homeless exposed
Around 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, beneath an overpass in front of Seoul Station, homeless people clutched plastic bags stuffed with soaked clothing. After days of sweltering heat, a heavy downpour had swept through the area. Some were trying to dry or wash their wet clothes on the spot.
As summer weather swings between extreme heat and torrential rain, those living on the streets endure each day fully exposed to both.
Next to a man identified only as A, who lives in a space near the overpass, sat a single bottle of water from a support center — the ice long melted, the water lukewarm. "I get through summer on two bottles of ice water a day," he said. "In winter you can just layer up, but in summer there's nothing you can do."
Mun Gyeong-min, 66, who moves between Seoul National University Station and Seoul Station, said waking up in an underground passage on days like these leaves his clothes soaked through with sweat. "I can wash my face in the bathroom as many times as I want, but I can't shower," he said. "So whenever I get some money, the first thing I do is go to a public bathhouse."
He smiled and added, "Still, today there's a breeze and some clouds — I can't tell you how nice that is."
The Dasiseogi Hope Support Center, which operates near Seoul Station with support from the Seoul Metropolitan Government, sees a steady stream of homeless people seeking refuge from the heat and rain.
The center runs a 24-hour cooling shelter and provides shower and laundry services, but demand far outstrips capacity in summer. A notice posted at the center Tuesday read: "Due to a shortage of undershirts and underwear since July 1, distribution has been suspended. We will purchase more as quickly as possible and resume normal distribution."
"What people need most in summer, when they have to change clothes frequently, is clothing of all kinds," a center official said. "Donations of unworn clothes from the public would be put to very good use."
Experts call for year-round support, not one-off measures
With this summer forecast to bring record-breaking heat, the government has been drawing up measures to protect vulnerable groups — but experts warn that one-off responses have their limits.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare released a summer protection plan for vulnerable groups, including street homeless, in June. The plan calls for operating cooling shelters and emergency sleeping facilities in areas with high concentrations of street homeless, and distributing cooling supplies such as ice water and cooling mats.
Heo Jun-su, a professor in the Department of Social Welfare at Soongsil University, said the approach of paying attention to homeless issues only when a heat wave or cold snap strikes must change. "We need to track the whereabouts and health of homeless people and those in energy poverty on a regular basis and provide support 365 days a year," he said, stressing that sustained attention is needed rather than stopgap fixes.
Heo also said homeless people face overlapping hardships — financial difficulties, alcohol dependency and mental illness — and that specialized services tailored to the underlying causes must be provided.
A ministry official said discussions are ongoing to ensure that a wide range of real-world cases and expert opinions are reflected in the third comprehensive plan for homeless welfare and self-sufficiency support, set to be announced this year.
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