Gaps Found Throughout Disaster Reporting System... No '112 Report → Ministry of the Interior and Safety' System

Confirmation of Inadequate National Disaster System in Itaewon Tragedy
Ministry of the Interior and Safety's Disaster Management Under Scrutiny... 'Level 2 Situation' Emergency Texts Not Sent Directly to Minister

On the 4th, during the national mourning period following the Itaewon tragedy, citizens continue to visit the memorial space set up around Itaewon Station in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The flaws in the national disaster system, revealed by the Itaewon tragedy, are emerging in various places. There was no system in place for 112 emergency calls to be transmitted to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's Disaster and Safety Situation Room, and even the emergency text message sent by the Ministry, which judged the situation as 'Level 2,' was not directly delivered to Minister Lee Sang-min.

On the 3rd, Kim Seong-ho, head of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's Disaster and Safety Management Headquarters, stated at a briefing of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, "The minister received the accident situation on-site at 11:20 PM. It was the content reported by the fire department." Kim added, "We still do not have a system in place to receive matters related to 112, and I think that part is insufficient. Since the National Police Agency is not a reporting agency under the Disaster and Safety Management Act, a legal amendment is required, and we will consult with the National Police Agency on this matter."

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety explained that when information related to 119 is received at the Disaster and Safety Situation Room, it is classified into fire department levels 1, 2, and 3 and disseminated to related agencies, but 112 calls are not received by the situation room. Despite 11 reports being received via 112 from 6:34 PM on the day of the accident, the Ministry was completely unaware.

The first time the fire department received the accident report was at 10:15 PM when the 119 call was first received; the Ministry's situation room received it at 10:48 PM, and it was delivered to the minister at 11:20 PM. The situation room operates a system that classifies incidents by stages, so after fire department Level 2 was declared, the emergency text was sent to the secretariat, but there was no direct report to the minister. The minister and vice ministers were excluded from the recipients of the Level 2 emergency text message, so the information was conveyed through secretariat staff.

Kim explained, "When the fire department classifies the situation as Level 1 and reports it to the situation room, the Ministry's situation officer classifies it into Levels 1 to 4 and sends emergency texts to related agencies and recipients by rank. Level 2 messages are disseminated to vice ministers and staff. In the process of delivering information by stage, the minister receives the report only after Level 2."

Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min is attending the Itaewon accident and COVID-19 Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 4th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety determines the situation level considering the scale of the disaster and the fire department's response level: Level 1 is for directors and section chiefs, Level 2 for heads of relevant offices and vice ministers' secretariats, Level 3 for ministers, vice ministers, and all executives above section chief level, and from Level 4, direct reporting to ministers and vice ministers occurs. Immediately after this tragedy, the situation officer issued a 'Level 2' alert and delivered it to the vice ministers' secretariat. Regarding the fact that Minister Lee received the accident report 19 minutes later than the president, Kim said, "It is difficult to provide a specific answer."

The Fire Department Situation Room reported the accident to the Presidential Office's National Situation Room at 10:53 PM, 38 minutes after the accident occurred. The National Situation Room chief reported the accident to President Yoon at 11:01 PM. Lee Il, director of the Fire Department's 119 Response Bureau, explained, "When the Fire Department reports to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, it simultaneously contacts related ministries. I understand that the report was made to the Presidential Office during that process."

Although the Ministry of the Interior and Safety established the Police Bureau and was granted authority to manage and supervise the police organization, the command and reporting system did not function. This means the Ministry is not free from responsibility for inadequate police management and supervision, as well as accident response. Kim said, "Depending on the investigation results, those responsible will be held accountable according to the degree of responsibility."

Hwang Chang-seon, the National Police Agency's Security Situation Manager, said, "The special investigation headquarters formed this time will operate very independently, and strict investigations will be conducted on all subjects regardless of their rank in the command chain or field personnel." Regarding whether the investigation of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency related to this tragedy will be handled by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety minister or the Police Bureau, Kim said, "I understand that the minister cannot command or intervene in investigations of individual and specific cases."

Meanwhile, regarding whether there were any similar reports received before the first 119 call at 10:15 PM, Lee Il, director of the Fire Department's 119 Response Bureau, stated, "As far as we have checked, there have been none so far."