South Korea: Over 300 Evacuated From 8-Story Building Fire; Visual Surfaces

A fire broke out in an eight-story building in Bundang, Seongnam, south of Seoul, on Friday, forcing the evacuation of more than 300 people. Fortunately, no serious casualties were reported.

It reportedly started about 4:37 p.m. in the Yatap-dong of Bundang-gu, near a store building. The first fire source reportedly started on the first floor kitchen of the building’s restaurant and quickly spread into the exhaust duct. Authorities finally put it under control after extinguishing it through the fire engines’ streams within an hour to prevent bigger catastrophe.

The rescue of over 240 people from the building was undertaken by the emergency responders. Nearly 70 managed to come out on their own. About 130 persons reported minor injuries caused mainly due to smoke, Yonhap News Agency reported.

Approximately 28 people were injured lightly, mostly by smoke inhalation, with no serious cases reported. The department said that the emergency workers were still at the site combing through the rubble to make sure that nobody was trapped inside.

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Recent Fires In South Korea

This incident is just a month after a fire broke out at the National Assembly in Seoul forcing the evacuation of nearly 500 individuals. The fire at the Assembly’s reception hall affected a pressroom and a wedding venue, underlining the risks that fire hazards present in public and commercial buildings.

The most tragic incident was the fire that broke out last year at a lithium battery plant in Hwaseong, claiming 23 lives. Most of the victims were inspecting battery products on the second floor when the fire started. This disaster brought into the limelight the dangers of handling volatile materials such as lithium and led to investigations into lapses in safety at the facility.

Authorities continue to investigate the cause of the Bundang fire and ensure that necessary precautions are in place to mitigate similar risks.

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