Gwangju City News

Reprinted with permission from Gwangju Metropolitan City Hall

Big-Data Analysis on the Appearance of Wasps

Double-killer wasps, the Asian hornets... There are many types of wasps. On September 4, the Gwangju Fire Department issued a warning on wasp and bee stings. Be careful during outdoor activities.

In order to prevent the annual increase in wasp and bee sting incidents, the Gwangju Fire and Safety Headquarters analyzed big data on the period of different types of wasp and bee appearance, and asked the public to be cautious. The results of the analysis show that they are most active in mating, nurturing queen bees, and raising caterpillars when the weekly average maximum temperature is around 27–28 degrees Celsius.

So far this year, the total number of hive-removal dispatches in Gwangju has been 1,665, with most of them belonging to wasp’s species (1,381). Among these, 749 were double-killer wasps (45%), 344 were exotic Asian hornets or black wasps (20.7%), 281 were hornets (17%), and 7 were Asian giant hornets (0.4%). In addition to wasps, in 20 cases (1%) they were common bees, and 264 cases (16%) were those of other bees and red-banded sand wasps.

The big-data analysis showed that the number of doublekiller wasps increased from April to 53 in June, 139 in July, and jumped dramatically to 537 in August, while the number of black wasps and hornets started appearing in May, and gradually increased to 43 in June, 231 in July, and climbed to 336 in August with a continued increase forecast until October. The Asian giant hornets began to appear in July and are predicted to appear regularly around the September–October period.

The most frequently reported double-killer wasps are the most common in Korea, while the exotic species of Asian hornets (black wasps) that are usually seen in urban areas pose a great danger to citizens due to the fact that they build their hives on roadside trees or apartment roofs. In particular, Asian giant hornets are the most poisonous,

and they build their nests in the ground or around graves, so incidents caused by their stings often occur during the fall season due to individuals accidentally disturbing the nests while tending graves in preparation for the Chuseok holiday.

The Fire Department Office has also issued a warning on bee stings. The alert is issued when 370 or more bee sting cases per week are reported and when 10,000 or more honeycomb removal cases occur or are expected to occur for two consecutive weeks, as special caution during outdoor activities is necessitated.

Accordingly, it is advised that one wear clothes of bright colors with long sleeves and pant legs, and wide-brimmed hats when doing outdoor activities such as tending to graves and mountain climbing. Furthermore, before tending a grave, one should observe their surroundings well and carefully look for any dark holes around the grave, since Asian giant hornet nests might be found there. In case of a wasp attack, one must quickly evacuate the area, and in case symptoms of allergy or anaphylactic shock (anaphylaxis) appear, immediately call 119 to seek first aid and hospital treatment.

Choi Min-cheol, head of the city’s Fire and Safety Division, said, “As wasps become more active in the fall period and many wasp sting incidents occur, special attention is required during the upcoming fall holidays when citizens visit their ancestor’s graves.”

Gwangju Swimming Competition Postponed

It has been announced that Gwangju Metropolitan City’s final decision is to postpone the “1st Gwangju Swimming Competition and Masters Championship” until next year as a means to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

In order to discuss whether the event should be held, 11 people, including officials from Gwangju City, the Korea Swimming Federation, Nambu University, and the Gwangju Swimming Federation held a meeting on September 11 at Nambu University, the venue where last year’s FINA World Championships were held. At the meeting, the opinion that the competition should be held this year was expressed. It was mentioned that doing so is necessary for the future careers and entrance exams of athletes and students, even though it would require implementing thorough prevention measures and postponement of the competition schedule. Due to the continuous spread of COVID-19, however, a consensus developed that in order to ensure the safety of both the participants and citizens, holding the event this year was not appropriate.

Especially taking into consideration the continuance of the social distancing mandate that began in July this year, when the social distancing level rose to Level 2, and afterwards when the level was elevated to Level 2.5, between August 27 and September 14, it was decided to hold the event next year due to the fact that many citizens are complaining of extreme living difficulties since that time.

Shin Dongha, the head of the city’s Sports Promotion Division, stated, “It is a very unfortunate situation for all of those who have worked hard to prepare for the competition, but at the moment when the safety of participants and citizens is of utmost importance, we ask for your understanding in the postponement of the event,” and added, “We promise we will do our best to host an even better event that swimmers and swimming enthusiasts from all over the country, as well as Gwangju’s 1.5 million citizens, will be able to enjoy together next year.”

In addition, as the spread of COVID-19 continues, the 15th Halla-bae National Swimming Competition (March), the 34th Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism’s National Sports High School Athletics Competition (April), the 2020 Korean National Sports Festival (April), the 49th National Youth Sports Competition (June), and the 2020 MBC National Swimming Competition (September) have all been canceled this year.