[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Traditional markets in Gyeonggi Province have been found to be vulnerable to fires, with fire alarm systems and arcade opening and closing devices not functioning properly.
Gyeonggi Province announced on the 9th that it conducted a special audit on the 'Fire Prevention Management Status of Traditional Markets' targeting Motgol General Market in Suwon City and Anseong Matchum Market in Anseong City from the 17th to the 19th of last month in preparation for the Lunar New Year, revealing these findings.
This special audit was carried out based on the fact that most of the arcades installed in traditional markets in the province are made of plastic materials similar to the soundproof tunnel on the Second Gyeongin Expressway, where a fire accident occurred in December last year.
The audit included citizen auditors comprising fire safety professionals from the audit office and experts in fire and safety fields.
The arcades in traditional markets in the province are made of polycarbonate (PC), which is self-extinguishing and safer compared to polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), which acted as kindling during the soundproof tunnel fire. However, due to their enclosed structure, fire safety and prevention measures are necessary.
The audit revealed that Motgol Market in Suwon had opening and closing devices installed on the arcade to allow toxic gases to escape upwards in case of fire, but these devices were found not to be functioning properly.
The province has requested the market to improve this and to establish maintenance and management plans going forward.
At Anseong Matchum Market, it was found that the contact information for the fire alarm facility, which automatically sends text messages to store owners and fire stations in case of fire, was not updated in a timely manner. The fire alarm facility automatically detects flames, temperature, and smoke, notifying store owners and fire stations to enable early fire suppression, and is installed in 53 markets across the province.
Additionally, poor paint conditions of indoor fire hydrants, broken switches on automatic fire detection equipment, and poor power supply status of emergency exit lights were also detected.
To ensure the effectiveness of improvement measures following the audit results, the province held a meeting on the 2nd with the departments in charge of traditional markets in Suwon and Anseong.
Lee Hee-wan, the province's chief audit officer, explained, "Taking this special audit as an opportunity, we plan to closely cooperate with related departments to manage safety at traditional markets and other livelihood sites."
Meanwhile, there are 156 traditional markets in Gyeonggi Province, of which 83 have arcades installed.
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