Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok Visits 'Ashes' Hyundai Market... "We Will Do Our Best to Support Damage Recovery"

Incheon City announced that it will do its best to support recovery efforts following the fire at Hyundai Market, which reduced 55 stores to ashes.

On the 5th, the city held an emergency situation assessment meeting chaired by Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok to confirm the fire damage and discuss support measures.

The city and Dong-gu, the local autonomous district, plan to review disaster relief fund and special disaster safety grant support, as well as local tax reductions and deferrals, in connection with the disaster support project for vulnerable households targeting small business owners affected by the fire.

They also decided to support the prompt insurance processing for stores that have fire insurance.

The city selected Hyundai Market as a priority target for the traditional market facility modernization project and is also promoting a plan to provide emergency management stabilization funds of up to 70 million KRW per store.

On the same day, Mayor Yoo personally visited the fire site with Han Chang-seop, Vice Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and held an emergency meeting with merchants.

Mayor Yoo said, "We will accurately investigate the damage and consider supporting parts that cannot be compensated by fire insurance through the disaster relief fund. We will do our best to quickly remove the fire debris, prepare temporary business spaces, and ensure rapid recovery."

Incheon Mayor Yoo Jung-bok and Han Chang-seop, Vice Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, are inspecting the fire site at Hyundai Market in Dong-gu, Incheon on the 5th.
[Photo provided by Incheon City]

At Hyundai Market in Songnim-dong, Dong-gu, Incheon, a large fire broke out around 11:38 p.m. the previous day and was extinguished after 2 hours and 50 minutes. There were no casualties, but 55 out of 205 stores were reduced to ashes.

The police believe the fire was arson committed by a man in his 40s who was intoxicated, and he was urgently arrested for investigation into the motive.

Hyundai Market, established in the Songnim-dong area of Dong-gu in 1960, is a permanent market, and most of the stores affected by the fire are reported to have fire insurance.