On May 19, the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology (KICT) and the Korea Science Journalists Association (KSJA) jointly hosted the "KICT Media Day in Andong" at the Andong River Experiment Center. Reporters from 15 media outlets attended the event and showed strong interest in the full-scale experimental facility and the KICT's core technologies for urban flood response.

The urban flood pilot test sites at the Andong River Experiment Center accurately replicate full-scale urban drainage infrastructure, including a six-lane roadway designed in accordance with the road standards of Seoul's Gangnam District, as well as storm drains, stormwater pipes, underground stormwater storage facilities, drainage tunnels, and pumping stations. In particular, the facilities can simulate road flooding of up to 1.6 meters in depth, enabling comprehensive verification of infrastructure performance and emergency response systems during urban flooding events.

The KICT plans to utilize the Andong River Experiment Center's test resources to secure empirical data and AI training data for urban flood response while advancing early warning technologies and numerical analysis models. The applicability of low impact development (LID) methods and blue-green infrastructure technologies will also be evaluated to support their broader adoption in national flood response policies and the development of urban disaster prevention technologies.

KICT President Park Sun-kyu delivers opening remarks at the KICT Media Day in Andong

Director Jung Sang-hwa of the Andong River Experiment Center provides an overview of the center's operations

KICT Research Fellow Kim Hyung-jun presents scientific flood prediction technologies, while KICT Research Specialist Kim Jong-min introduces the installation of the urban flood pilot test sites

Participants discuss the applicability of urban flood response technologies and the future direction of experimental operations

Participants tour the urban flood pilot test sites to observe full-scale flood simulations and advanced response technologies