Installed in a Safe Area Below the 22nd Floor... Focus on Rescue and Search Capabilities
[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Attention is focused on whether the search and rescue operations for the missing persons at the collapsed apartment site in Gwangju can now actively proceed to the upper floors.
According to the Accident Response Integrated Headquarters on the 18th, a forward command post is planned to be installed on the upper floors of Building 201, where the outer wall collapsed.
The forward command post will be set up in a location below the 22nd floor, which is considered relatively safe. The plan is to place equipment there and concentrate all search and rescue capabilities.
It will be installed after safety reinforcement work is carried out, and to this end, the advisory group is discussing specific locations and methods through meetings.
Safety nets to prevent falling debris have already been installed in the collapsed sections from the 23rd to 38th floors, where debris hanging on the cross-section poses a risk of secondary accidents.
The method for dismantling the 140m tower crane precariously leaning against the building is also expected to be decided within the day.
Reinforcement work is underway to secure the tower crane with wires and other means to dismantle it, as it is the biggest obstacle to searching for the missing due to the risk of secondary accidents.
Assembly of the dismantling crane is also in progress, and a final discussion on safety and dismantling methods will be held at an expert meeting this afternoon.
Meanwhile, at around 3:46 PM on the 11th, the outer wall of the 23rd to 38th floors of Building 201 of Hwajeong-dong I-Park in Gwangju, under construction by Hyundai Development Company, collapsed.
As a result of this accident, one person was slightly injured and transported to the hospital, and six people went missing. Among the missing, one person was found dead near the basement level 1 stairs on the afternoon of the 14th, four days after the accident, and search operations are ongoing to find the other five.
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