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housands of die-hard fans of South Korean boy band Super Junior (Suju) flocked to the Mata Elang International Stadium, Ancol, North Jakarta from 1 p.m. on Friday, to catch the first of three concerts, which was due to kick off at 7 p.m that night.

Hundreds of fans, expecting to attend Saturday’s concert, queued under the scorching sun at the venue’s compound.

The event organizer Showmaxx Entertainment opened the ticket sales on April 7, but it only provided buyers with vouchers that needed to be exchanged for tickets a day before the event.

Some fans complained about the sluggish ticket-exchange process saying they had to stand in line for almost an hour to collect their tickets. “I came here at 11 a.m., there were not many people, but still my friend took almost an hour to change our vouchers into tickets. I don’t know what took them so long,” said Hera Nurarifin.

The police have deployed 850 personnel to safeguard the concerts. Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto said that the police had deployed six ambulance units, with 12 doctors and 33 medical units in case any “Elfs” — “Everlasting friends” as Suju fans refer to themselves — needed medical assistance during the concerts.

Hospitals nearby have also been put on standby to receive patients in the event of an emergency.

The police said they had thoroughly checked the emergency exits on the Ancol Beach City compound in which the concerts will take place.

Evacuation routes have been prepared, including a water evacuation route using two boats, should the concerts turn chaotic.

“Our officers will be ready from 3 p.m. during the three-day series of concerts,” Rikwanto said.

The Hallyu, or Korean Wave phenomenon, has seen young entrepreneurs take advantage of the popularity of Korean artists in Indonesia.

Tasya, 25, who previously worked for an Asian entertainment magazine, saw that many fans in Indonesia found it difficult to obtain merchandise related to their idols.

Therefore when she met a colleague in Korea who could supply her with various Korean artists’ merchandise she and her college friend Novi decided to establish a shop called Pop! Korean Shop at Blok M Square in South Jakarta.

“Most of the goods in our shop are official merchandise from the artists’ managements,” she said on Friday, while displaying her goods in a car at the stadium parking lot on Friday.

The merchandise included pillows, banners, light sticks, T-shirts, mugs, cell phone chains and many other items.

“Two weeks prior to this concert, many fans were already looking for light sticks and T-shirts,” Tasya said.

She added that the concerts boosted her income from the usual Rp 500,000 (US$54.41) a day to around Rp 3 million a day. (riz)