(4th LD) World Scout Jamboree continues despite U.S., U.K. withdrawals amid heat wave

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SEOUL, Aug. 5 (Yonhap) -- Representatives of the participating countries decided to go ahead with the World Scout Jamboree on Saturday despite sweltering temperatures and other challenges that led U.S., British and other Scouts to pull out from the campsite on the country's southwest coast.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo announced the decision after a meeting of leaders of national contingents, reiterating Seoul's commitment to providing "sufficient" support to the event, which has been marred by heat-related illnesses, the spread of coronavirus, insect bites and other on-site obstacles since its opening in the Saemangeum reclamation area Wednesday.

"The representatives held a meeting and decided to continue to proceed with the event without a pause," Han said during a briefing at the jamboree's press center.

British Scouts prepare to leave the jamboree site in the Saemangeum reclamation area on the country's southwest coast due to a sweltering heat wave on Aug. 5. 2023. (Yonhap)

In light of the heat wave, the government is encouraging various programs to take place in other regions beyond Saemangeum, Han added.

The decision to proceed with the event was a sigh of relief for South Korean organizers as the moves by U.S., British and Singaporean Scouts to leave the Saemangeum site sparked speculation that other participants could follow suit, potentially leading the event to be halted or cut short.

Han enumerated a set of steps by the Seoul government to bring the jamboree event back on track.

They included the mobilization of more than 700 personnel to keep shower and other facilities clean, the provision of 104 additional air-conditioned buses and 64 canopies and the deployment of 60 more medical professionals, including 28 doctors.

The prime minister also noted President Yoon Suk Yeol ordered him and Interior Minister Lee Sang-min to devise tourism programs that would enable jamboree participants to see firsthand South Korea's industry, culture, history and nature.

"We will make more effort until the participants are fully satisfied," he said.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo speaks during a press briefing at the World Scout Jamboree in the Saemangeum reclamation area on South Korea's southwest coast on Aug. 5, 2023. (Yonhap)

A pall was cast over the fate of the Jamboree event Friday as British Scouts announced their plan to leave the campsite, while the World Organization of the Scout Movement called for the consideration of "alternative" options to end the event earlier than scheduled.

Earlier on Saturday, British Scouts started to depart for Seoul from the Saemangeum site aboard buses. Some 4,500 British people joined the Jamboree event, becoming the largest contingent in this year's edition.

Some of them complained of insect bites, dirty bathroom conditions and other issues. Still, they plan to remain in Korea and travel back home as originally planned from Aug. 13, according to a statement posted on their website.

U.S. Scouts followed suit. Lou Paulsen, a senior official of the U.S. contingent, told Yonhap News Agency that due to the hot weather, U.S. Scouts will move to Camp Humphreys, an American military garrison in Pyeongtaek, 60 kilometers south of Seoul, on Sunday morning, and they plan to stay there through Aug. 11.

Singaporean Scouts also decided to leave Saemangeum earlier than planned, according to the jamboree organizing committee. A total of 67 Singaporean people have reportedly partaken in the event.

Despite the withdrawal move, the Scouts from the Philippines, Saudi Arabia and Argentina said they will stay at the campsite.

Compounding the challenges at the jamboree was the spread of COVID-19.

From July 29 through Friday, a total of 70 virus cases, including five South Koreans, were reported from the Saemangeum campsite, according to the provincial authorities.

The pullout decisions came although President Yoon instructed the government Friday to provide unlimited air-conditioned buses and refrigerator trucks to protect young participants in the jamboree event and finalized the spending of 6.9 billion won (US$5.3 million) to assist the event.

Prime Minister Han also visited the Saemangeum site, pledging to put the central government at the forefront of the efforts to ensure the safety of the Scouts.

Meanwhile, the organizing committee is considering changing the schedule of a K-pop concert set for Sunday night in the Saemangeum reclamation area due to safety concerns.

A forecast of rain for Sunday in Buan County, in which the campsite is located, is also a cause for concern for the organizers.

British Scouts load their luggage onto a bus heading to Seoul on Aug. 5, 2023, at a campsite of the World Scout Jamboree on the country's southwest coast, as Britain decided to leave the site amid the sweltering heat. (Yonhap)

This photo, provided by the World Organization of the Scout Movement, shows participants in the World Scout Jamboree cooling down from the heat in a pond at the campsite on the country's southwest coast on Aug. 5, 2023. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

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