Photo By Senior Airman Tylir Meyer | Airmen assigned to the 51st Fighter Wing and Gyeonggi-do Safety Experience Center...... read more read more
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OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea – Emergency services Airmen assigned to the 51st Fighter Wing received a tour of the Gyeonggi-do Safety Experience Center at Osan, Republic of Korea, July 18, 2025.
This tour served to solidify an agreement with the Gyeonggi-do Safety Experience Center to provide quarterly tours that teach Airmen and their families about local safety and risks that U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Christian Arvelo, 51st Civil Engineer Squadron deputy fire chief, hopes to be integrated into the wing’s in-processing.
“We’re guests in this country and a lot of us probably don’t realize the difference of the fire codes, response to emergencies, their technology, and communication systems,” Arvelo said. “We are relearning a whole different culture–to include safety culture and emergency response.”
The Gyeonggi-do Safety Experience Center, run by the Republic of Korea Fire Service, aims to improve people’s ability to respond to crises and establish safety culture in everyday life. The center is the largest safety experience center in the country, with immersive safety halls including fire, traffic, camping, disaster and child safety.
Airmen and civilian personnel assigned to various base emergency services units–fire, explosive ordnance disposal, emergency management and the Red Cross–experienced firsthand demonstrations and were briefed on safety practices taught to the Korean populace to better understand and integrate with local emergency services.
“Learning about disaster preparedness here makes us better prepared and equipped to respond here at Osan to any potential disasters that happen here on the peninsula,” said U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Jahryd Hopkins, 51st CES noncommissioned officer in charge of fire prevention. “Safety is our number one priority.”
Arvelo and the Osan Air Base Fire Department’s desire to create public awareness and education around safety has led to expanding multiple initiatives to improve family and overall safety readiness in the Osan community. Some of these initiatives have improved relationships with the Gyeonggi-do fire commissioner, Songtan Fire Department, Pyeongtaek Fire Department and Republic of Korea Air Force Fire Department.
“We’ve opened partnerships in mutual aid to improve our response capabilities,” Arvelo said. “It has helped tremendously in training and public education, to the point where we are doing fire inspections on the SED [Songtan Entertainment District] for the safety of our members.”
Increasing awareness of local safety measures not only ensures Airmen and their families are prepared should any crisis or contingency arise–it also allows Status of Forces Agreement personnel to be good neighbors and respond appropriately in the community to assist host nation citizens.
| Date Taken: | 07.18.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 07.23.2025 02:47 |
| Story ID: | 543580 |
| Location: | OSAN AIR BASE, GYEONGGIDO [KYONGGI-DO], KR |
| Web Views: | 61 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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