More than 80 scouts sent to hospital from heat exhaustion at World Jamboree opening ceremony

[RememberSchiff]

@qwazse welcome home. Hot water on stove, Hario drippers, some ground medium roast. @SSScout  just baked some cobbler. 

[RememberSchiff]

"Multiple scouts and adults who participated in the 2023 World Scout Jamboree ...had applied for refugee status as soon as they arrived in South Korea for the global event, according to the legal sources.

The justice ministry declined to disclose the number of people or their nationalities but plans to make a decision on whether to grant the application after conducting the necessary screenings."

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2023/10/113_361525.html

[qwazse]

30 minutes ago, RememberSchiff said:

"Multiple scouts and adults who participated in the 2023 World Scout Jamboree ...had applied for refugee status as soon as they arrived in South Korea for the global event, according to the legal sources.

The justice ministry declined to disclose the number of people or their nationalities but plans to make a decision on whether to grant the application after conducting the necessary screenings."

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2023/10/113_361525.html

I wouldn’t be surprised if this happened before, but was kept from the press.

S Korean media is very good, and they took two months to run with this story.

[RememberSchiff]

5 hours ago, qwazse said:

I wouldn’t be surprised if this happened before, but was kept from the press.

Did some searching,

In 2001, Four Tanzanian Boy Scouts went missing from the National Scout Jamboree and sought asylum.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tanzanian-boy-scouts-want-asylum/

 

I was unaware that  the UNCHR (United Nations Refugee Agency) has taught classes at international jamborees.

Scouts sample refugee life at their international jamboree

"...one of the jamboree's main boulevards, down the hill, in a tent tucked under the trees, UNHCR and STAR (Student Action for Refugees) run equally popular twice daily workshops for groups of 25-50 scouts using 'Passages' - a role play in which participants are forced to flee their home and seek sanctuary in another country. " 2007 (England)

https://www.unhcr.org/us/news/stories/scouts-sample-refugee-life-their-international-jamboree

2019 (Bechtel) Scouts follow the refugee experience of Omar from Syria to Finland.

https://www.unhcr.org/news/stories/scouts-gain-insights-after-stepping-lives-refugees

"A scout is a friend to all, and that includes with refugees."

Refugees have real problems... and we have to work harder to accept them."

"The opportunity for the youngsters to connect with refugees is hopefully the first step on a journey to transform their schools, Scout groups, sports teams, and communities into more welcoming places for all", according to Secretary-General of the World Organization of the Scout Movement Ahmad Alhendawi.

[RememberSchiff]

Update 04/16/2024: Jamboree Independent Review Panel Report released

"In September 2023, the World Scout Committee appointed a Review Panel for the 25th World Scout Jamboree to independently and impartially review the events associated with the 25th World Scout Jamboree. Panel members included Neil Carney (Co-Chair, Ireland), Phil Harrison (Co-Chair, Australia) Rocí­o Moreno Lopez, (Mexico), Mare Reinicke (Sweden), Ana Saldarriaga (Colombia), and Kevin Tan (Singapore), who were selected based on their demonstrable and varied subject matter expertise, and their geographic and cultural diversity of backgrounds. "

"Poor communication, oversight, accountability and responsibilities led to the failures behind the organization and execution of last year's World Scout Jamboree in Korea, according to a report authored by an independent review panel and released by WOSM on April 16."

Sources:

How Korea's World Jamboree Became a Global Fiasco

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2024/04/113_373413.html

25th World Scout Jamboree, Report of the independent Review Panel (48 pages)

https://wosmlzs3.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/2024-04/25th World Scout Jamboree - Report of the independent Review Panel_EN.pdf

https://vcp.de/pfadfinden/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/25th-World-Scout-Jamboree-Report-of-the-independent-Review-Panel_EN.pdf

WOSM acknowledges the Panel's review and recommendations, and has started addressing them.

https://treehouse.scout.org/topic/25th-world-scout-jamboree-report-independent-review-panel

@qwazse   @AwakeEnergyScouter

 

Edited 5 hours ago by RememberSchiff
alternate link for Independent Review 48pg

[RememberSchiff]

Update 4/10/2025:  South Korean government Audit Board releases 542 page report

Their report found a "complete lapse in all aspects of management including lack of competency and awareness of the organizers exacerbated by poor execution of work led to the failure of the Saemangeum Jamboree.

• The organizing committee was headed by a retired public servant at the Ministry of Gender who lacked expertise and staffed mostly by personnel without experience working on large international events.
• The Ministry of Gender, which was supervising the organizers, failed in its role to oversee preparations and made a false report to the cabinet ahead of the opening that the event was ready.
• Facilities including toilets and showers, power and communication equipment and trash disposal were insufficient and inadequate, and the organisers failed to follow up on questions about preparations

The Audit Board referred four individuals for criminal investigation and 12 officials for disciplinary action."

I have not yet found a link to the 542 page report or a mention of WSM or other Scouting organizations.

Sources:

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/south-korea-probe-blames-sweeping-lapses-world-scout-jamboree-debacle-2025-04-10/

https://biz.chosun.com/en/en-policy/2025/04/10/DZC2ZSUAYVB63NXL6CKEB7A5JQ/

Edited yesterday at 10:26 AM by RememberSchiff

[qwazse]

I hope other countries around the world will not be discouraged from hosting the WSJ fearing lack of “Experience working on large international events.”

I had a great time on that reclaimed seabed, and would’ve have rather spent more time there.

It’s tragic that the event continues to be used for political witch hunts.

[yknot]

6 hours ago, qwazse said:

 

I had a great time on that reclaimed seabed, and would’ve have rather spent more time there.

It’s tragic that the event continues to be used for political witch hunts.

The site never should have been selected in the first place for any kind of scouting event and it's incomprehensible that US scouting endorsed the site with its presence. The "reclaimed seabed" was a tidal estuary habitat of extreme environmental importance for migratory species in a very challenging part of the world. It was like endorsing a Jamboree on a paved over a US National Wildlife Refuge the size of the Great Dismal Swamp in Virginia or something else of comparable square mileage and importance. It never should have gotten to the logistical nightmare phase because the Jamboree never should have been held there in the first place. The politics that are most to blame are within the scouting organization not in South Korea. 

[RememberSchiff]

7 hours ago, qwazse said:

I hope other countries around the world will not be discouraged from hosting the WSJ fearing lack of “Experience working on large international events.”

I had a great time on that reclaimed seabed, and would’ve have rather spent more time there.

It’s tragic that the event continues to be used for political witch hunts.

Not just WSJ...

"The audit found that the 2023 Saemangeum World Scout Jamboree, which tarnished the credibility of the Republic of Korea, was a "predictable failure" due to the unilateralism and desk administration of our public office. Attention is focusing on whether it will be a wake-up call in the run-up to the '2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit' to be held in Gyeongju in October this year and the 2036 Summer Olympics bid."

Source:

https://www.mk.co.kr/en/politics/11288619

[skeptic]

On 8/2/2023 at 8:58 PM, MattR said:

Heat exhaustion at 93F is most likely from ignoring all the advice to drink enough fluids. It could also be from getting the wrong advice about salty foods and not getting enough electrolytes. It could also be not recognizing the symptoms. In the summer. If a scout starts complaining about having an upset stomach it's a huge red flag to get them out of the heat, sipping water and either eating salty stuff or drinking something with electrolytes. It takes a few hours before they start feeling better but the good news is they typically learn a lesson. Some kids don't like to drink water and they learn it's not a bad thing. In all honesty, 80 scouts out of many thousands is not a surprise to me. Our camp, with  250-300 scouts per week, would have one or two a day dealing with dehydration.

One of our long time adult staffers who was in charge of first aid and medical stuff for campers would get up in front of the group every morning at flags and say "drink water; don't puke!'  While we were at a bit over 5000 feet, summer was very dry, as it was on the edge of the desert off the 5 between Bakersfield and L.A.  I am a bit surprised that when the known weather is known, why the do not automatically furnish neck cooling rolls or similar devices.  Also, making the youth, and some adults keep hats on is also a given.  Today, we do have options not known at one time, wicking long sleeve shirts for example.  A.P. Hill was hell due to humidity, and I guess the The Summit has that challenge too.  

[skeptic]

Just now, skeptic said:

One of our long time adult staffers who was in charge of first aid and medical stuff for campers would get up in front of the group every morning at flags and say "drink water; don't puke!'  While we were at a bit over 5000 feet, summer was very dry, as it was on the edge of the desert off the 5 between Bakersfield and L.A.  I am a bit surprised that when the known weather is known, why the do not automatically furnish neck cooling rolls or similar devices.  Also, making the youth, and some adults keep hats on is also a given.  Today, we do have options not known at one time, wicking long sleeve shirts for example.  A.P. Hill was hell due to humidity, and I guess the The Summit has that challenge too.  

I first learned about humidity at Lackland AFB in 1965.  I arrived in San Antonio at 7ish PM in the first week of June, coming from So Cal, 29 Palms.  It had been over 100 every day the week before I left, but there humidy often was single digits.  I got off the plan at the airport; it was in the high 80's, much lower than when I left home, by the thermometer.  But I sort of just become a puddle of water right there on the tarmac.  I had worked in an open pit salt mine in the Mojave just prior to that time, and I was used to hot, really hot; but as noted single digit humidity most of the time.  We did have the occasional clothing clinging thunder storms on occasion; it smelled good, but everything just clung for hours after the storm moved out.  Pay attention and do what has proven to help.  

 

[qwazse]

@yknot, were you there?

Do you have anything (say a garrison athletic complex or a reclaimed strip mine) with which to compare it?

[RememberSchiff]

From the 04/16/2024 (WSM) Jamboree Independent Review Panel Report (48 page)

Key findings page 6-7:  Not a criticism, but a brief summary from WSM perspective.

Recommendations page 7-8:  Going forward, I do not know if recommendations were considered/adopted.

Conclusion page 8: The buck stops with World Scout Committee?

...In detail, the Panel noted a significant difference in the perceptions as to who should be
accountable for the success or failure of the event, and a lack of clarity as to the role that the
World Scout Bureau can and should play in the organisation of these events. While WOSM’s
Constitution entrusts the World Scout Bureau with the responsibility of supporting the
organisation of the Jamboree, the Bureau had, in practice, little or no authority to intervene
in the planning and execution of the event...

The World Scout Committee is the only body with a 360° overview of the whole event, right
from its inception in the bidding phase up to the final execution. The World Scout Committee
is also the only organ with the remit and authority to make decisions on behalf of the World
Scout Conference between Conferences or, when needed, to escalate the decision to the
Conference.

Furthermore, the World Scout Committee is responsible for overseeing risks and ensuring
that proper controls are in place. Therefore, the view of the Panel is that while the Host is
responsible for the planning and delivery of a Jamboree, ultimately the accountability for
the organisation and execution of the Jamboree should in the future lie more expressly and
clearly with the World Scout Committee

[skeptic]

4 hours ago, qwazse said:

@yknot, were you there?

Do you have anything (say a garrison athletic complex or a reclaimed strip mine) with which to compare it?

Not sure I understand your question.  No, I was or am not at the current international event.  I have in the past attended three Nationals, and I observed many attendees either not getting the heat and humidity challenge or simply ignoring it for some reason.  In my active adult life, I have encountered many extreme temperature and weather situations to which I needed to pay attention. 

Point is that heat and cold are major factors, but they include the levels of humidity as well which often are overlooked.  Precaution is always the main consideration, and most of the time, those precautions are warranted.  It they do not come into play, then nothing lost.  

[yknot]

7 hours ago, qwazse said:

@yknot, were you there?

Do you have anything (say a garrison athletic complex or a reclaimed strip mine) with which to compare it?

I don't see how anyone who is a member of any outdoor conservation organization,  of which Scouting is supposedly one, could have attended that WSJ. The Saemangeum sea wall project was on many global watch lists and was fought for years. It's got to be the first time a WSJ was used to christen the destruction of a globally important environmental region.