Free meals for homeless residents expanded to three times daily; 200 households with children to receive fruit gift boxes; welfare payments extended to 10,000 households; welfare safety net strengthened through check-ins on isolated residents

A birthday meal table set for elderly residents
A birthday meal table set for elderly residents

Yeongdeungpo-gu will roll out a comprehensive Chuseok relief plan targeting vulnerable residents during the holiday period from Wednesday through Monday.

The district said the plan aims to strengthen the welfare safety net for vulnerable groups and ensure all residents can enjoy a comfortable and warm holiday.

From Thursday through Saturday, free meals for homeless residents will be expanded to three times daily through the district's comprehensive support center, self-sufficiency center and temporary shelter, eliminating concerns about missed meals during the holiday.

The district will also provide newly introduced Chuseok gift boxes — containing fruit and nutritional supplements — to 200 low-income households raising children.

Holiday welfare payments will be extended to 10,000 households receiving basic livelihood benefits, with additional payments going to low-income single-parent families (284 households), children under protection (234 children) and people with severe disabilities (about 4,000). Welfare officials will also conduct well-being check-ins on about 1,600 elderly residents living alone and around 700 socially isolated households to minimize gaps in care.

The district will maintain tight emergency medical and public safety systems throughout the holiday. Around-the-clock emergency response teams will operate across all departments, including a central situation room. An emergency medical operations center will remain active, and 53 clinics and hospitals along with 32 pharmacies have been designated to stay open, ensuring uninterrupted medical access. Residents can find the full list of open facilities on the national emergency medical portal.

Measures to ease daily inconveniences are also in place. The district — the first in Seoul to introduce a voice-alert system for parking enforcement — will use the service to encourage drivers to move their vehicles voluntarily rather than issue fines, helping prevent traffic congestion.

Thirty-six public parking lots, including school grounds, will be opened free of charge. Special enforcement operations will also target illegal taxi conduct at the stand in front of Yeongdeungpo Station late at night.

Household waste may only be put out on Saturday and Sunday between 8 p.m. and midnight; disposal will be prohibited from Wednesday through Friday. The district will operate a sanitation operations center, deploying 606 workers and six road-sweeping vehicles to conduct intensive waste collection along major arterial roads and at designated collection points, keeping the entire district clean throughout the holiday.

Yeongdeungpo-gu District Mayor Jo Yu-jin said the district would "thoroughly manage the holiday on the ground by closely attending to welfare blind spots and strengthening hands-on support that residents can feel in their daily lives." She added, "I hope everyone enjoys a joyful holiday with family and loved ones they haven't seen in a while."


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