We have had a problem in our neighborhood with “adjoshis” who think they are the Ministry of Health and Welfare. They fog for mosquitoes in broad daylight — when there are no mosquitoes — and do so when small children are around, giving no warning. Now, not thirty minutes ago, these fools have driven around, fogging for imaginary mosquitoes, exposing the public to whatever they are fogging and this is the earliest time ever, before the monsoon. I haven’t even seen a single mosquito yet at night!
I only wonder: can Seoul City not stop these people that take public health and safety into their own uneducated hands and inflict their ignorance upon the public!?
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“lose” or “loose”?
It always gets me that that blast through the neighborhood in the middle of the day.
The mosquitos (“mogi”) are already out in Busan, but it seems the only things these gassers accomplish is poisoning & annoying the citizenry!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TS6fqwIR18
My personal favorite was 1998, getting off the train in Jeonju. Going into the station from the platform, the building was full of mogi fog as they had just bug bombed the place during normal working hours. The funny thing was that there were dozens of people still sitting on the waiting benches, without a care in the workd as they breathed in the thick poison cloud.
I loved being told by the locals “for mogi, people okay”
The solution is simple: Call the police and report a terrorist act of poisoning and give them the street name and the number of the vehicle. Have all your neighbors who hate it do the same.
as if.
They have had hard lives. We should understand!
“I haven’t even seen a single mosquito yet at night!”
Bitten two weeks ago, and killed another a few days ago. Both in Seoul, so they’re already out there albeit fogging may be a bit premature.
What makes you think the Ministry would do any differently?
“Sperwer”, *what* makes you think think a couple of neighborhood guys know better than some health professionals? The ministry reportedly employs health professionals. It would not make sense for them to hire just any guy off the street that does not know the life cycle of mosquitoes.
This is all the work of unqualified people who I would not trust my family or my well-being with.
Unannounced, drive-by fogging during daytime hours is not the act of any responsible health organization, in any country. Any search on the internet will lend support to that statement too.
Are the health ‘professionals’ actually professional?
Jeffery Hodges
* * *
Funny story: my dad was and is the head of the mosquito task force for my hometown. It was a once a year side-position that netted him some nice vacation-conferences.
Anyway, this is definitely NOT how you get rid of mosquitoes. You do it by going into every backyard and alleyway and knocking over any water that’s collected. You then pass out flyer educating people to do the same inside of their property. Then, you go to *tree boles* and spray poison in those (mozzies only need like a thimble of water to reproduce).
“jdog”, two years ago, I discovered that the same neighbor adjumas that had begged someone to come out and fog poison around their apartment had large containers filled with water directly behind their apartment building, right where they had put them. These ignorant people were helping to breed the very mosquitoes that were biting them!
If Gwanak-Gu officials can not educate people about mosquitoes, then there will always be a problem.
I’m not an expert on mosquitos, but… does it matter if the mosquitos are ‘out’ as in, flying around, for the fog to have an effect? I assume that they must be ‘sleeping’ under eaves or a leaf or someplace during the mid-day, where they are probably just as susceptible to the poison.
But, I agree with your main point, which is education and a targeted approach, rather than gassing the neighborhood.
By the way, what type of poison are they using? And, how dangerous is the stuff to people, pets, etc? Would be interesting to find out.
Aren’t these trucks 구청-issue? Thus City Hall-related…?
There is only one way to get Koreans to stop using old and ineffective methods in insane and dangerous ways while ignoring the real problem; have them use technology instead!
http://www.physorg.com/news156423566.html
Here’s a fun game for Korean kids –
See who can inhale the most mosquito pesticide:
http://pds10.egloos.com/pds/200809/12/82/a0014082_48c9844b0dfee.jpg
A little research reveals that one of the pesticides used is called 파모스린- which contains the poison cypermethrin, which is used in Raid and other insect killers. It’s also toxic to fish, and led to writhing,convulsions, and salivation in small doses to rats. and is classified by the US EPA as a possible human carcinogen (group C).
Hmmm… good stuff!
These guys grew up at a time when DDT was thought to be “harmless.”
I recently emailed some complaints (with pictures) to Seoul City Hall about a patch of road that was a significant contributor to a traffic accident I was in. One went through the Seoul Global Center, and the other through the City Hall “contact the mayor’s office” website.
At first I was very cynical about it. The SGC person on the phone said, “I’ve never heard of this kind of thing before, please send us an email instead,” which didn’t give me much confidence.
However, I was SHOCKED at how seriously the mayor’s office took my complaint. Two days later Samsung insurance contacted me to say the City would pay for my damages, and encouraged me to visit a doctor, orthopedic surgeon (wasn’t necessary, but I went), dentist, etc, and to save all my receipts so that they could pay for it. Soon after that the problem spot in the road had an emergency patch on it.
I know it’s easy to get cynical about life in Korea (This year I had been in unusually cynical about it, in fact), but it doesn’t take much effort to write a friendly, but matter-of-fact complaint letter plainly stating the problem (including pictures and citing sources if need be), and you might be pleasantly surprised.
Just to clarify, orthopedic surgery wasn’t necessary. I went just to be safe. I wasn’t trying to waste a bunch of taxpayer money or anything.
Korean mosquitoes are the most clever ones. During the day they’re good hiders – your flat can be full of ‘em and you’ll never see ‘em. They don’t attack until lights out, and their attack doesn’t commence until they think you’re asleep. Fast buggers too, so good luck trying to ambush ‘em. They delight in biting your joints, such as your wrist, ankle and those of your fingers – places that demand much scratching on your part once bitten. If you’re lucky they’ll attack your spouse more often then you. Have a taste for garlicy blood, me thinks.
It’s all OK!!!
B/c Koreans eat kimchi.
Fan death.
There. I was the first to say it.
@17
Interesting story
@19
Wait, mosquitoes are in your house? That’s a house problem, not a mosquito one.
Regardless, a simple and “permanent” mosquito net over the bed works wonders. It’s quite common in places with no windows due to high year round temperature.
Or you could just burn down your house to kill the mosquito. Wait, that’s Korean politics…
Or you could just burn down your house…
Actually, Mizar, that’s German politics circa 1933.
referencing DDA….
R.Elgin, you seem to be assuming that these trucks belong to some rogue citizens as opposed to being official city vehicles. Is this because there are no hi seoul signs on the trucks? If that’s the case, you’re also suggesting that these ajjoshi’s are just spending their own money for the good of the community around them. I find that hard to believe. Why don’t you go down and ask the drivers who they’re working for?
A Korean friend of mine told me that they used to chase these trucks around when they were kids, they thought it was fun to run in the smoke.
Explains a lot.
Right. I find it difficult to believe that these guys aren’t working for, at the very least, the local dong of gu office. Ask one of the guys next time you see him.
I remember getting a massive headache and nausea after running behind the smoke for a while. I wonder if this is why it took me so long to graduate from college…
Rather than bitching and moaning on the sidelines, why not become a community organizer and put a stop to this?
I am one of those who grew up with fond, nostalgic memories of the green, curly thingies that when lit, warded off mosquitoes. It reminded me of my paternal grandparents.
Elgin@7:
Take a deep breath, boy. I clearly wasn’t suggesting that the street vendors of DDT are more qualified than the “professionals” at the Ministry of Health. Rather that the more aptly-described bureaucrats at the Ministry aren’t likely any more genuinely professional or, likely to act out of professional considerations, than the knuckleheads in the Bongos. Moreover, as DDA points out, it’s not likely that the Bongos were acting simply on their own initiative without govt authorization at some level. In my neighborhood, the trucks have temporary signs attached indicating they are acting on behalf of the Gu office.
None of the aforementioned methods are an effective way to rid your homes of pesky mogis!
The only answer is the super duper electrified tennis racket. Not only is it a great way to kill the little bastards, but it’s oh so satisfying to hear them get electrocuted when you whack em!
~Available from ajumas on almost any street corner for 6000 Won~
Guys, they do get help (a truck) from the local Dong office, which uses “volunteers” to perform alleged public service.
I am working on this problem now. I have gone to the local Gu office before with almost no results. I will do something different this time.
Enjoy your raging case of malaria when they do stop.
This from a nation that protests by the millions concerning US beef.
Apple itouch has some anti mosquito apps you can download for .99 . Supposedly they emit a high pitched noise the mogi’s hate. I think a Korean invented one of the apps.
Just trying to help
I am working on this problem now. I have gone to the local Gu office before with almost no results. I will do something different this time.
I had recourse to direct action, i.e., after innumerable unanswered complaints, when I heard to truck coming next time I stood at the entrance to our street, Buford Pusser-like, with a long axe handle in hand ( and very politely explained we didn’t want any). They detour around us now. It may have helped that I was joined by my neighbor, a retired ROKMC two star sporting the side arm that retired ROK general officers are allowed to carry.
My worst experience was some rocket scientist with a hand held leaf blower hooked up with a tank of mogi poison. Someone thought it was a grand idea for the poison man to come in and bug bomb our university buildings at 2 in the afternoon on a Wednesday.
I had to block the door and demand that the guy go away to stop him from bombing the teacher’s office. He thought I was the crazy one.
All the people who don’t enjoy inhaling poison had to evacuate the building and our classes had to be cancelled for a couple of hours.
I was furious about this idiotic lunacy, so I went to the office and inquired as to who’s brilliant idea it was to bug bomb the building in the middle of the work day.
I was met with mostly silence and could finally tell they just wanted me to go away.
Here’s the million dollar question: how do you help people who don’t want to be helped?
There is no malaria in Seoul nor is there any threat of such.
Try educating yourself on a topic before you try posting false information and nonsense.
Malaria is a concern in SK.
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/opinon/opi_view.asp?newsIdx=24386&categoryCode=160
Take a pill Andy if you are worried. That is not germane to this issue.
Malaria is not local, though that might reach Seoul some day day.
http://www.asiaone.com/print/News/Latest%2BNews/Asia/Story/A1Story20080429-62457.html
I suppose it is a problem in NK, which is one of the few countries that still uses DDT.
They bug bomb the train stations to the point that my clothes and hands still smell like insecticide when I take the train in winter.
“Malaria is a concern in SK.”
Nah, that’s not it at all. Many Koreans are extremely sensitive to mosquito bites. If my son looks like a boxer after a fight if he gets bitten anywhere on his face. It’s not the mosquitoes because he has the same allergic reaction to bug bites in Canada.
Damned cutting and pasting…
My son looks like a boxer after a fight if he gets bitten anywhere on his face.
New research claims that DDT affects the sperm count in human males…but, the ban was based on overblown claims:
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2428/was-rachel-carson-a-fraud-and-is-ddt-actually-safe-for-humans.
@45
Yeah, more people have died from banning DDT than if they had used the stuff.
It’s still not nice stuff and needs responsible application, but malaria is much worse.
Hey, you know, when I was a kid in Florida, I would have extreme reactions to mosquito bites. Big puffy spots the size of silver dollars. After living here for 20+ years, I don’t react at all anymore. I think you just get used to it.
Colontos,
I sure there are far more mosquitoes in Florida than in Korea. Heck, we’ve got a lot more mosquitoes in my part of Canada, and our summers are barely 2 months long. I guess that’s because there are few untouched wetlands left in South Korea and rice paddies are sprayed with lots of insecticides.
I know it’s easy to become very concerned when you are exposed to unknown chemical poisons, but we should react and respond sensibly.
I’m not saying it’s perfectly safe – of course it’s a good idea to try to limit any unnecessary exposure to any chemical. And it’s a good idea to find out as much as possible about what is being used. It’s also a good idea to try to persuade officials to change application times and methods to avoid unnecessarily exposing people (and to persuade them that there are other methods that can be used instead or as well). But, try not to be overly concerned by talk of writhing, cancer-ridden rats.
If the chemical in use really is Cypermethrin, then it’s not too bad. It’s a regular household insecticide. If you’re concerned about that, and (like me) refuse to use aerosol bug spray, well fine. Here are a few facts about it:
It’s a synthesised form of the insecticidal chemical that occurs naturally in the pyrethrum daisy.
According to my quick online search (see links), it is (with, at worst, an LD50* of 150mg per kg of bodyweight) slightly more** toxic than caffeine (192mg/kg) and about three times less** toxic than nicotine (50mg/kg) . That’s if the effects on rats are the same as on humans.
As long as you weigh over 50kg and don’t ingest more than 7.5 grams at once, or 2.5 grams a day, you’ll probably be fine… well, 50% of people will be*.
The evidence is not clear on how carcinogenic it is. It has an EPA rating of ‘Suggestive evidence of carcinogenic potential’ (formerly: Class C). That means there is limited evidence – not enough to say for sure – of any increased risk of tumours. As it’s been around since the mid ’70s, so there’s been a lot of time to find out.
Still, as chemical sensitivity varies from person to person, it’s a good idea to avoid excessive, direct, or prolonged exposure.
*LD50 is the dose that is lethal to 50% of the exposed population.
**The lower the LD50 number, the more toxic a substance is.
Links:
US National Pesticide Information Center fact sheet:
http://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/cypermethrin.pdf .
Another page of useful cypermethrin facts:
http://extoxnet.orst.edu/pips/cypermet.htm
EPA carcinogenic potential page:
http://www.epa.gov/opp00001/health/cancerfs.htm
LD50 definition with a table of examples:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LD50
A guy was using a hand sprayer at the local festival yesterday. A picture here:
http://gangwon.blogspot.com/2009/06/hyunsan-festival.html
Elgin,
“There is no malaria in Seoul nor is there any threat of such.
Try educating yourself on a topic before you try posting false information and nonsense.”
From the Joongang last year:
“In Korea, another deadly form, P vivax, or tertian malaria, can be found.
Tertian malaria is not the deadliest form of the disease, but it is recurring and is the most widespread. This year, 338 people have been afflicted.”
More than 300 people – that’s a fair enough concern, in my books.
Sorry, Elgin, I didn’t notice the “in Seoul” in your comment. Still, for those of us in the provinces, it’s something to think about.
“KWB” check the link I placed in #41. They indicate that malaria has crept about 10k into SK from NK. Unless you live further north of Seoul, close to the DMZ, its not a worry.
The only problem are unqualified people that do large scale fogging without prior notice, during times when there are no mosquitoes, not to mention there is no education about not leaving out basins of water for mosquitoes to breed in. Fogging without notice is potentially harmful to kids and people with respiratory problems, not to mention if I go out and leave my windows open during the day, I get poison all inside my apartment. Heck, did I also mention that, at best, this fogging only targets adult mosquitoes and lasts for only six hours, at best. It also kills all the good insects in the area, thus it is a waste of money since there are other more effective means of mosquito control.
deleted (offensive)
Nicely timed, swlee. You’ve probably got a good 12 hours til Robert finds you. Have fun peeing on the carpet until then.
Just about wrapping up, thank you. Mrs Linkd and Baby Linkd have already left the country, I’ll be joining them in Canada in a few weeks. Shacked up with a friend in HBC now, counting time and drinking too much. Some guy named Al is giving away free beer at his new bar over the 3 Alley tonight. He could really use a men’s room attendant, it was getting pretty sloppy in there. You (BM-organ) looking for work?
Yes, but survival of the fittest means the mosquitos in Korea pack a much larger punch. In fact, they kill babies. In fact they’ve morphed into centipedes, and their mortal enemy is the chicken.
Elgin,
The dangers of late night commenting? I was trying both to compliment you on the post -idiots with pesticide – and condemn your comment -no threat in Seoul. I’m glad no Seoulites vacation north of Seoul.
“KWB”, it’s cool; don’t worry.
I remember running after these trucks breathing in lungful after lungful when I was a kid in Korea, along with all the kids in the neighborhood. Good time, good time.
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