Earthquake Misunderstanding Causes Evacuation Commotion Involving Dozens Including Bride and Groom
Hotel: "Flooring Contracted by Cold Expanded and Cracked Due to Heating"
On the 24th, an incident occurred at a hotel banquet hall in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do, where the tile flooring was damaged, causing dozens of people to evacuate in a commotion. Photo by Yonhap News
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] At a hotel wedding hall in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do, an incident occurred where the floor tiles cracked and fell with a loud noise, causing the bride, groom, and dozens of guests waiting in the lounge to evacuate in a commotion.
According to Yonhap News on the 25th, the accident happened the previous afternoon on the 3rd floor of a hotel wedding hall located in Wansan-gu, Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do. The host family testified about the situation, saying, "Suddenly, there was a 'bang' sound, cracks appeared on the floor, and eventually, the cracked tiles broke with a loud noise, causing the floor to cave in." Guests gathered in front of the wedding hall mistook this for an earthquake and shouted, "It's an earthquake," "Get outside quickly," and rushed to the stairs all at once.
The bride, groom, and their families waiting in the lounge also heard the guests' screams and hurriedly evacuated outside the wedding hall. The bride, dressed in a wedding gown, ran outside without properly dressing despite the freezing weather below zero degrees Celsius. With dozens of people crowding the narrow stairs at once, the wedding hall quickly turned into chaos.
Despite the serious situation, the hotel did not broadcast any announcements at the time, nor did it deploy safety personnel. After learning about the accident belatedly, the hotel covered the damaged floor with a carpet and posted notices on the walls. The hotel explained, "The flooring material, which had contracted due to the subzero temperature, expanded as the indoor temperature rose with the heating system operation, causing the damage," and added, "There is no problem with the building's safety."
After the commotion, when the host family confronted the hotel about its careless response, the hotel stated that since a ceremony was ongoing in another wedding hall on a different floor, they did not make an announcement. The hotel also said, "We do not think there was a major safety issue," and "Because of the cold weather, similar incidents have been occurring in other buildings using tile flooring."
Regarding the absence of safety personnel, an executive of the hotel said, "There were probably staff members assigned to each wedding hall, but it seems they did not pay attention to evacuation," and added, "We apologized to the host family, but we do not understand why this was reported to the media." The hotel also reported that they immediately began repairing the cracked floor after the accident and worked overnight to fix it.
In a phone interview with Yonhap News, the bride tearfully said, "It was supposed to be a once-in-a-lifetime wedding, but it turned into a nightmare," and "I am very upset that the guests who traveled a long way to celebrate the wedding could neither see the ceremony properly nor eat well before leaving." She also added, "Not only was the wedding ruined, but the hotel even mocked us as if we were being overly sensitive about this incident, which made me very angry."
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