Upon Witnessing Fire, 'Brave Bus Driver' Rushed to Extinguish Flames

Early Extinguishing with Fire Extinguisher Carried Onboard
"Just Doing My Job... Safety Training Helped"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] It was recently revealed that a city bus driver in Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk, extinguished a fire at an early stage while driving.

According to Gyeongju City on the 29th, Choi Woosik (62), a driver of the Saecheonnyun Miso Route 600 city bus in Gyeongju, witnessed a fire near a commercial building by the roadside around 1:05 p.m. on the 20th while driving near Gugeo Intersection in Oedong-eup. He immediately stopped the bus, grabbed a powder fire extinguisher stored next to the bus door, and ran to the fire scene to put out the fire.

A CCTV video capturing Choi Woo-sik (62), a city bus driver in Gyeongju-si, Gyeongbuk, extinguishing a fire.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

If the fire had spread to the commercial building, it could have caused significant damage, but thanks to Choi’s quick action before the fire truck arrived, the fire did not grow larger. The bus’s closed-circuit television (CCTV) captured Choi carrying the extinguisher, crossing the street, and running to the fire scene to extinguish the flames. When the police and firefighters arrived, only smoldering embers remained.

Choi said, "I just did what I had to do," and added, "The mandatory safety training I received once a month at the company was a great help."

Gyeongju City stated, "All city bus drivers in Gyeongju are emergency safety experts," and added, "Although it was a situation where significant damage was feared, thanks to Choi’s quick thinking, the fire was extinguished early."

This is not the first time a Saecheonnyun Miso city bus driver has extinguished a fire. In April last year, Kwon Woonggi (53), a driver of Route 200, witnessed a fire on a compact car hanging from a tow truck at a national road intersection. He parked the bus on the shoulder and took a fire extinguisher from inside the bus to put out the fire. In December 2021, Song Daewoong (45), a driver of Route 350, quickly extinguished a fire that broke out after a collision involving a passenger car ahead, preventing greater damage. Additionally, in November 2021 and January last year, drivers of Routes 51 and 70 performed emergency treatment on passengers who had collapsed without consciousness or breathing, saving their lives.