Creator of suicide prevention phone system reflects on impact for 15th anniversary
Published: 10 Apr. 2026, 08:00
![Park Sung-min, who created the SOS Life Line communication platform for individuals in suicidal crisis on bridges over the Han River, poses for a photo during an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo at the Mapo Bridge in western Seoul on March 27. [JANG JIN-YOUNG]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/04/10/756074b4-90e6-4f6d-a675-8e767ada0d74.jpg)
Park Sung-min, who created the SOS Life Line communication platform for individuals in suicidal crisis on bridges over the Han River, poses for a photo during an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo at the Mapo Bridge in western Seoul on March 27. [JANG JIN-YOUNG]
In the early days of SOS Life Line, Park Seong-min moved from bridge to bridge along the Han River in the cold, carrying rags and detergent to clean the emergency phones that he had helped install.
He did not expect many people to pick up the phone, but he still spent sleepless nights worrying that someone might attempt suicide beside one of them — and that he might not be there in time. Sometimes, he even took a taxi in the middle of the night to check.
Park led the creation of SOS Life Line, a privately operated suicide prevention system through which those in crisis can call for help and immediately alert 119, or emergency services, of their location. The service, Park described as having raised like his own child, marks its 15th anniversary this year.
The Life Insurance Philanthropy Foundation has installed 75 phones that operate around the clock across 20 bridges over the Han River — Seoul’s largest river, which runs through the heart of the city — with plans to add more. As of the end of last year, the system had helped rescue 2,395 people, often through emergency dispatches triggered during calls.
Next month, a related service, “SOS Mind Line,” will open in central Seoul to provide counseling for those experiencing everyday distress, extending support beyond moments of immediate crisis.
Building a lifeline on the Han
![A SOS Life Line phone on a bridge over the Han River [LIFE INSURANCE PHILANTHROPY FOUNDATION]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/04/10/92386c84-f860-494e-8c9f-dedef49076e1.jpg)
A SOS Life Line phone on a bridge over the Han River [LIFE INSURANCE PHILANTHROPY FOUNDATION]
Park’s involvement began in 2010, after Seoul installed screen doors between the platforms and tracks at subway stations. As suicide attempts at subway stations declined, they began to shift to bridges over the Han River.
At the time, Park worked on suicide prevention at the Life Insurance Philanthropy Foundation. Alongside officials from the Seoul Metropolitan Fire and Disaster Headquarters and representatives of LifeLine Korea, he helped build the SOS Life Line system, drawing on examples from the United States and Australia.
Building the system from scratch brought a series of practical challenges. Park and his colleagues had to determine everything from the phones’ design to how many of them should be installed on each bridge.
“My priority was making sure we didn’t miss a single call,” he said in an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo on March 27. “So we set a flexible system in which more counselors would be working during times when the number of calls typically surged.”
More than suicide prevention
![Park Seong-min, who created the SOS Life Line platform for individuals in suicidal crisis on bridges over the Han River, poses for a photo during an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo at the Mapo Bridge in western Seoul on March 27. [JANG JIN-YOUNG]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/04/10/ebecc16c-b674-43be-9c87-4a5fecacb796.jpg)
Park Seong-min, who created the SOS Life Line platform for individuals in suicidal crisis on bridges over the Han River, poses for a photo during an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo at the Mapo Bridge in western Seoul on March 27. [JANG JIN-YOUNG]
After first being installed on Hannam Bridge and Mapo Bridge in 2011, the phones quickly drew attention. Mapo Bridge, which connects western Seoul’s Mapo District and Yeouido — a major political and financial hub — and features a wide pedestrian walkway, became closely associated with the service. Park returned there dozens of times.
During one visit, he pressed the emergency button to check whether a malfunction on the phone had been fixed, then hung up without speaking. Within minutes, rescue workers and an ambulance had arrived.
“I still remember the look in the rescuers’ eyes. They thought that I was trying to take my life,” Park said. “[The moment] caught me off guard, but it also made me realize how important the phone is.”
Signs of the system’s broader impact also emerged. A high school student from Gwangju, approximately 267 kilometers (166 miles) from Seoul, once traveled to the capital specifically to use one of the phones. After speaking with a counselor, however, she returned home. Years later, she sent a letter to the foundation.
“I enrolled in a social welfare program at university. Thank you for helping me back then,” she wrote.
“It made me reflect on the impact that a single phone can have on someone’s life,” Park said.
A remaining crisis
![A 119 rescue worker writes a message of support on a paper airplane for a social campaign at Yeouido Hangang Park in Seoul on Oct. 15, 2024. [NEWS1]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/04/10/1fc8c92c-f7aa-414d-babe-81f5915d0735.jpg)
A 119 rescue worker writes a message of support on a paper airplane for a social campaign at Yeouido Hangang Park in Seoul on Oct. 15, 2024. [NEWS1]
Despite such cases, Korea continues to struggle with a high suicide rate. The rate declined slightly from 31.7 per 100,000 people in 2011 to 29.1 in 2024, but it remains the highest among countries in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Park has since left the foundation and now runs a social venture focused on care for older adults, but he continues to follow suicide prevention efforts closely.
“In the end, it’s about talking and listening,” he said. “When people can’t comfortably share what they’re feeling inside, they become depressed and may turn to suicide.”
He pointed to the importance of rebuilding social connections.
“Whether it’s suicide prevention or care for older adults, the answer lies in having a community. Even a small network [...] can provide people with enough strength to go on.”
The growing role of SOS Life Line leaves him feeling both grateful and conflicted.
“The number of people who need these phones isn’t decreasing,” he said. “Ultimately, [the phones] should be used less and less until they’re no longer necessary.”
For now, he hopes the phones continue to serve those who need them the most.
“As long as they’re needed, I hope that they remain a place that listens and helps,” he said. “Issues such as debt and depression that callers face should be handled more actively through public services so we can reduce the risk of suicide at its root.”
If you or someone you know is feeling emotionally distressed or struggling with thoughts of suicide, LifeLine Korea can be contacted at 1588-9191 or the Crisis Counseling Center at 1577-0199. The Seoul Global Center offers English-language counseling, contact 02-2075-4180 (+1) to arrange a session. Other international helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JUNG JONG-HOON [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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