The story of a local taxi driver is going viral on the internet for saving a passenger from attempting to take his own life. Lee Ho-yeon, a 29-year-old taxi driver, successfully dissuaded a man standing on the railing of Tangeum Bridge from jumping after leaving his taxi on the night of March 26 in Chungju, North Chungcheong Province. Lee felt some foreboding that the man might attempt suicide considering his condition and requested destination. Dashboard footage provided by Seonjae Taxi, Lee&rs

Social Affairs April 10, 2023

“The geomungo was a ‘hip’ instrument and the most popular among noblemen 500 to 600 years ago. And such appreciation is returning today,” said Shin Ji-hee, a 29-year-old player of the geomungo, a six-string instrument with the widest pitch among Korea’s traditional string instruments -- of three octaves. The origin of the instrument dates back to around 1,500 years ago during the period in which three kingdoms reigned on the Korean Peninsula: the Goguryeo, Baekje an

weekender April 8, 2023

Every day, there have been an average of 13 reports of vomit being found in Seoul's subway stations and trains since 2020, with alcohol consumption being the primary cause, data showed Thursday. According to Seoul Metro on Thursday, 13,928 vomit-related complaints have been submitted to the company since 2020. According to the survey, the complaints were the most frequent on Fridays, followed by Saturdays, accounting for 18.8 percent and 16.2 percent of the total, respectively. When it come

Social Affairs April 7, 2023

A legal fight that stretched over six years seeking damages for school bullying was thwarted as the plaintiff’s lawyer failed to attend three hearings, the victim’s bereaved family said Wednesday. The plaintiff, Lee Gi-cheol, said the lawsuit seeking damages from education officials, authorities and suspected bullies’ parents ended unfavorably on Nov. 24 due to her lawyer Kwon Kyeong-ae’s repeated absences, via her Facebook account. The South Korean Civil Procedure Act st

Social Affairs April 6, 2023

An English listening comprehension test taking place in middle schools halted helicopters deployed to fight forest fires in Hampyeong and Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, on Tuesday morning. The Jeonnam Fire Service Headquarters stopped helicopter operations from 11:00 a.m. to 11:30, including the 20 minutes when the radio-based listening comprehension test was carried out simultaneously in 29 schools in nearby areas affected by the forest fires. The forest fires started separately on Monday in

Social Affairs April 5, 2023

A man is in critical condition after he set himself on fire at Gwanghwamun Plaza in central Seoul, on Tuesday evening, according to authorities. The man, reportedly in his 50s, was taken to a hospital. He appears to have tried to burn himself to death in front of the statue of King Sejong, according to reports. The fire spread to a container but was extinguished minutes later by a person who first witnessed the scene, Jongno Fire Station told local media. The police are still investigating the i

Social Affairs April 5, 2023

A 37-meter-high pile driver fell on residential buildings at a construction site in Ulsan on Wednesday, resulting in five residents being sent to a hospital. The machine, used for pushing foundations into the ground, struck three residential buildings severely damaging their exteriors, after tipping over while moving in the apartment construction site, local media reported. Three people aged over 60 and two in their 40s, including one pregnant woman, were sent to hospital after being rescued fro

Social Affairs March 30, 2023

The South Korean Coast Guard on Monday caught two Chinese fishing boats engaging in illegal fishing in South Korea’s exclusive economic zone, or EEZ, near Incheon after intense resistance by the sailors. The Coast Guard on Monday evening successfully chased the two vessels that were working while hiding the ships’ name with a fishing net in the South Korean EEZ, 100 kilometers southwest of Socheongdo, one of three westernmost islets adjacent to the North Korean coast near Incheon. Fi

Social Affairs March 29, 2023

Subway operators are to be issued new guidelines that will require them to consider not stopping at stations when trains are overcrowded, according to the Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport. The ministry said that once the new guidelines are issued, local governments will send emergency text-message alerts guiding subway users to alternative transportation. The ministry on Tuesday announced its plan to adopt the emergency alerts to deal with excessively crowded subways, revising its r

Social Affairs March 29, 2023

Jeon So-min, a student majoring in traditional architecture, shows how she measures Yuhyeondang at Korea National University of Cultural Heritage in Buyeo-gun, South Chungcheong Province. Yuhyeondang, a vacation home built 1971, has all the marks of traditional hanok -- from the graciously curved eaves to the wooden floor exposed outside. But for convenience, modern styling has been applied to its lighting, kitchen and restroom. The building is a good example of how traditional architecture deve

weekender March 25, 2023

Chun Woo-won, former President Chun Doo-hwan's grandson, on Friday, said he had recovered from losing consciousness and vowed not to use drugs again. The 27-year-old who lives in New York wrote an update on his Instagram account about what had happened to him since he abruptly stopped live-streaming on March 16, when local police pulled him out of his apartment after he began using drugs while live-streaming and showed signs of hallucinating. Chun was moved to a hospital via ambulance. The

Social Affairs March 24, 2023

Four former Hana Bank officials have been found guilty by the Supreme Court for manipulating recruitment results in favor of graduates from certain schools and those recommended by high-ranking bank officials or financial authorities. They were also accused of discriminating female applicants from 2013 to 2016, local media reported Friday. Song, a former head of the bank’s human resources department, was sentenced to one year in prison, suspended for two years, and a 2 million won ($1,550)

Social Affairs March 24, 2023

Footage of pedestrians who came together in the spur of the moment to rescue a driver from a flipped car earned praise online Thursday. Ulsan Metropolitan Police on Thursday shared a video of an accident on its YouTube channel, showing some ten passersby gathering around a sport utility vehicle that tipped onto its side at a junction in Ulsan on Tuesday morning. As some people begin to push the vehicle back up, other passersby and drivers dashed to pitch in. Only around 80 seconds after the car

Social Affairs March 23, 2023

Suspicions of cult leader Jeong Myeong-seok abusing lawyer visits have risen, with records showing that he had visits from his legal representative on average of 1.7 times a day during his detention since October, a lawmaker revealed Wednesday. According to Rep. Park Bum-gye of the main opposition Democratic Party, Jeong had met lawyers 265 times during his current detention as of March 3. He was detained on Oct. 4 on suspicion of sexually assaulting his follower in the South Korean religious gr

Social Affairs March 22, 2023

A former South Korean rugby national team member who starred in Netflix’s sports entertainment show “Physical: 100” has been indicted on charges of rape and physical assault against his girlfriend. He allegedly committed the assault while threatening her with a knife. Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said on Wednesday that it had indicted the athlete the previous day. The suspect has been in police custody since he was apprehended on Feb. 23. A knife, believed to

Social Affairs March 22, 2023