South Korea: Army vows to step up safety, medical measures for reservist training following fatal incident

Seoul, July 2 (IANS) The South Korean Army vowed on Thursday to step up safety and medical measures for regular reservist training, following the death of a reservist during a night drill north of Seoul in May.

After an extensive probe into the case, the Army said the death of the reservist in his 20s was caused by his pre-existing medical conditions unrelated to the training, but vowed efforts to enhance safety steps for such drills.

On May 13, the reservist fell unconscious on his way to a night training site during the three-day reservist training in Pocheon, about 40 kilometres north of Seoul. He died while being transported to a hospital.

The incident sparked widespread criticism of the overall management of reservist training, fueling speculation that instructors pushed ahead with the drills without considering the health conditions of individual participants.

The Army said the investigation found the reservist died of pancreatitis, a pre-existing condition he had been treated for over an extended period.

“We sought professional opinions from two independent forensic consultation agencies and it has been confirmed that the underlying medical condition was directly linked to the cause of the death,” an Army official said in a press briefing.

The official denied various rumors surrounding the reservist’s death, including speculation that the division commander used a drone to keep tabs on the troops. He said the drones were used to simulate contingencies.

Although the death was determined to be unrelated to the training itself, the Army said it will take this unfortunate incident as a turning point in reforming the reservist drills.

It will have emergency medical teams permanently stationed at all reservist training grounds. It will also pool available medical personnel from relevant divisions and adjacent units, as well as from private medical practices if needed, for large-scale outdoor training, Yonhap news agency reported.

“We will work to fully establish a system by the end of this year to ensure optimal emergency medical care can be provided within the critical ‘golden hour,'” the Army said in a release.

–IANS

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