Is Lotte World Mall safe and sound?

An escalator at the Lotte World Mall’s Avenuel building in Jamsil, southern Seoul, is being fixed after a malfunction Tuesday afternoon. The escalator started running again about an hour later. /Korea Times photo by Kim Bo-eun

By Kim Bo-eun

Entering the Lotte World Mall in Jamsil, southern Seoul, Tuesday, the smell of the new building is overwhelming. Currently, the huge structure beside it stands 97 floors tall. It will be 123 stories or 555 meters high when completed.

When the area for emergency evacuation comes into view, visitors may imagine a scene or two from a disaster movie, such as The Towering Inferno.

The sad sounds of a spin-the-wheel event marking the 100th day since the mall opened echoes through its eerily empty corridors. The mall is packed with the hottest brands but bored shopkeepers stare into their smartphones.

Meanwhile, the aquarium is shuttered with signs informing visitors it is closed indefinitely after leaks were found in December, as clerks attend to those who want to refund their memberships.

The mall is dead quiet until a group of Chinese tourists arrive and the luxury floors suddenly become crowded and the sound of Mandarin fills the air.

Not surprisingly, the stores are plastered with Chinese signs imploring visitors to buy their goods.

On the way down from the seventh floor after wandering around the Avenuel building, there is a sign blocking customers from using the escalator going down to the fifth floor.

The escalator is out of order, and while it's being fixed an uneasy-looking usher tells the customer to use another escalator down to the corridor.

This comes after Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin paid a visit to the mall, Monday and pledged to make the building a safer place.

Lotte World Mall has been mired in controversy since before even opening its doors in October, with a string of scares involving sinkholes, cracks in the mall's floors, leaks at the aquarium and tremors at its cinema.

Another shopping area is adjoined with the Avenuel building by an outdoor bridge where the 123-story tower still under construction can be clearly seen.

Unfortunately, this space is no less depressing than the previous building.

A walk across the floor leads to the cinema, which is also closed, following the reports of tremors there.

An usher sits alone in the vast area, close to a sign indicating safety sessions are being held for employees.

On exiting, around 30 minutes after seeing the out-of-service escalator, it is moving again.

Leaving the building after spending two hours there, this reporter developed a headache, which could be attributed to the chemical smell noticed on entering the place.

The mall undoubtedly is a beautiful building with eloquently designed floors and marble walls.

If one is audacious enough to face the scares and is a fan of shopping in peace and quiet, the Lotte World Mall might just be the place for you. If not, you probably won뭪 find yourself going there again.