Gangwon's Gangneung closes public bathrooms, swimming pools as drought continues

The drought-ridden east coast city of Gangneung is now shutting down public bathrooms and swimming pools to restrict the use of water as the region's struggles continue, following earlier restrictions at major hotels and resorts.

The water level at the Obong Reservoir — one of Gangneung’s main water sources — stood at 14.4 percent as of 6 p.m. Monday, according to a report released Tuesday by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety on the city's drought response. The level had dropped 0.3 percentage points from the previous day and continues to decline.

The government responded by implementing a partial water cutoff, limiting 75 percent of residential water usage. It also closed 47 public restrooms and suspended operations at three swimming pools in the city.

Authorities are running an emergency support team, deploying water trucks and distributing bottled water to vulnerable residents and community facilities. Some 1.41 million bottles have been stockpiled, and more than 280,000 bottles had been delivered to senior care centers and schools by Monday.

The worsening water shortage is hitting the tourism sector hard. Several of Gangneung’s major hotels and resorts have suspended or scaled back operations of water-intensive facilities such as saunas and swimming pools.

Shilla Monogram Gangneung suspended its sauna and pool operations entirely until the drought emergency measures have lifted. Skybay Hotel Gyeongpo closed the hot baths in both the men’s and women’s saunas, leaving only the shower rooms open. Lakai Sandpine Resort also shut down its cold and hot baths, maintaining access only to the shower stalls.

Sun Cruise Resort & Yacht halted the use of all public swimming pools starting Tuesday, and Seamarq Hotel restricted access to its sauna hot baths, open-air baths and outdoor jacuzzi. St. John’s Hotel closed its Ocean Infinity Pool and shortened the operating hours of the Pine Infinity Pool.

Maple Beach Golf & Resort shut down both the hotel swimming pool and the hot and cold baths on its golf course. Guests canceling reservations due to these changes are not being charged cancellation fees.

While these restrictions are causing unavoidable inconveniences for tourists, the hospitality industry said they are “an unavoidable measure to help Gangneung overcome its water crisis.”

President Lee Jae Myung ordered a "state of disaster" be declared for the city on Saturday and issued a national mobilization order to firefighters after the reservoir’s water level dropped below 15 percent. The Interior Ministry made the declaration on Saturday at 7 p.m., and Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province raised its disaster response level to Level 2 on Sunday.

The Korea Meteorological Administration said there is no significant rainfall forecast for Gangneung through Sept. 10, suggesting that the current water restrictions may worsen in the days ahead. Local businesses are also bracing for a prolonged drought and are exploring countermeasures.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

BY BAE JAE-SUNG [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]