Gyeongbuk Province Launches 119 Special Response Unit... Enhancing Capabilities for Earthquake, Typhoon, Nuclear, and Hazardous Chemical Accident Response

A bird's-eye view of the Gyeongbuk Province 119 Special Response Unit completed in the first half of this year.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Gwi-yeol] Gyeongbuk Province opened the new office of the 119 Special Response Unit in Naedan-ri, Gijae-myeon, Pohang on the 1st to ensure rapid response to special disaster accidents, and officially commenced operations.

The 119 Special Response Unit was established as the Gyeongbuk Fire Headquarters 119 Special Rescue Team following the 2013 hydrofluoric acid leak accident. Upon relocating to the new office, it was reorganized as a directly affiliated agency with one division and three teams, comprising 70 personnel. The three teams consist of the 119 Aviation Unit, the Direct Rescue Team (Headquarters), and the Direct Rescue Team (Gumi Branch).

The Pohang new office covers a site area of 88,040㎡ with a total floor area of 5,636㎡ across four buildings. Construction began in 2014 and was completed in the first half of this year.

Equipment includes two firefighting helicopters, 24 vehicles, 4,915 units of 352 types of rescue equipment, and three search and rescue dogs are also operated.

With this relocation, the previous challenges of dispersed operations across four regions, which hindered coordinated responses, have been overcome. This enables faster and more efficient responses to various special disasters such as nuclear facility and hazardous chemical accidents, large-scale natural disasters like earthquakes and typhoons, and chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) terrorism.

Governor Lee Cheol-woo stated, “There are numerous nuclear facilities in the province, and natural disasters such as earthquakes and typhoons frequently occur, making preparedness crucial. We ask that you do your best to respond perfectly to the increasing special disasters so that residents can live safe and comfortable lives.”