One man in his 60s dead, one seriously injured, one minor injury
Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters activated
At around 10:31 a.m. on the 24th, a fire broke out at a lithium battery manufacturing factory in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, resulting in one death and other casualties. More than 20 workers at the site are currently unreachable, so the damage is expected to increase.
On the 24th, a fire broke out at a primary battery manufacturing company located in Seosin-myeon, Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi-do, and firefighters are conducting extinguishing operations. [Image source=Yonhap News]
According to the fire authorities, firefighting efforts began at 10:41 a.m., about 10 minutes after the report was received. The fire department issued a Level 1 response at 10:40 a.m. and escalated to Level 2 at 10:54 a.m. The National Fire Agency stated that the response levels were proactively raised in the control room due to concerns over multiple casualties.
The fire department is currently deploying 50 pieces of equipment and 135 personnel to extinguish the fire and conduct rescue operations. A fire official said, "Upon arrival, continuous battery explosions made firefighting difficult. Currently, it is difficult for the rescue team to enter the site," adding, "Once the fire stabilizes, we plan to deploy rescue teams to search for people inside."
So far, one man in his 60s has died, and a man in his 50s has sustained severe full-body burns. Additionally, two others suffered minor injuries such as smoke inhalation and ankle injuries during evacuation and were treated on-site before being sent home.
However, since the factory employs both regular and daily workers, the exact number of workers is not yet confirmed. The fire authorities estimate, based on statements from on-site workers, that 67 people were working that day. It is reported that 21 people are currently unreachable. The fire department is preparing to track their locations with the cooperation of company officials.
The factory where the fire occurred manufactures lithium batteries and consists of 11 steel-framed buildings with a total floor area of 5,530 square meters. A fire official stated, "Due to the nature of the factory, it is impossible to enter with water, so dry sand must be used to extinguish the fire."
In response to the casualties and the current unaccounted-for personnel at the Hwaseong factory fire, the government decided to activate the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters from 12:36 p.m. for a comprehensive government response.
Lee Sang-min, Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, held a Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting and urged, "Related agencies and local governments should closely cooperate to prevent the spread of damage and ensure no additional casualties occur."
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