Packing Survival Bags for 4 Million Won Amid Growing 'War Fears'

Dozens of bottled water packs are piled up, and large shopping carts are filled with emergency food supplies such as canned goods, cereal, and sterilized milk.

Recently, posts certifying that people have stockpiled goods and packed "survival bags" in preparation for emergencies such as wars or major disasters have been appearing continuously on social media and online communities.

One community user who revealed their online shopping mall order history disclosed that they ordered 40 packs of ramen, a portable gas stove, and energy bars, stating, "I bought disaster bags for each of the five family members, including water purification filters, purification tablets, and CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear) masks, and the cost was 4 million won."

The types of items being prepared are also professional, including foldable portable toilets and bags in preparation for water outages, as well as solar-powered auxiliary batteries.

Posts mentioning that they have organized batteries by type in dedicated cases, or even equipped themselves with urine coagulants, work gloves, and saws, also stand out.

It is analyzed that growing anxiety over recently unstable international relations has had a major impact on this craze for stockpiling emergency supplies.

As the situation in the Middle East became unstable due to airstrikes on Iran by the U.S. and Israel, and concerns over a prolonged war grew, the psychological urge to prepare for potential emergencies rapidly spread in South Korea as well.

Adding to this, news reports from late last month that governments of major countries such as the UK, Sweden, and Germany advised citizens to "stockpile emergency supplies for a minimum of 3 days up to a maximum of 2 weeks" further stimulated anxiety.

With the situation like this, posts sharing checklists and encouraging participation in stockpiling are also on the rise.

In response, experts pointed out that while maintaining a reasonable level of routine disaster preparedness is necessary, people should refrain from indiscriminate stockpiling driven by excessive fear.

(Reported by Lee Hyeon-yeong | Video edited by IYOO | Design by Sumin | Produced by SBS Digital News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.