Residents gathered for a meeting rush straight to the underground parking lot
Quickly suppress initial fire before firefighters arrive
The video posted by Mr. A along with the text shows three men, who appear to be residents, carrying fire extinguishers and heading toward a burning vehicle. [Photo by Online Community 'BobaeDream']
Recently, a fire broke out in the underground parking lot of an apartment complex in Gyeyang-gu, Incheon, and the story of how the residents' quick response prevented major damage has become a hot topic. On the 3rd, an online community, BobaeDream, posted an article titled "Another truth about the vehicle fire in Incheon underground parking lot, please spread the word." The author, Mr. A, wrote, "The news was brief, but there is one truth I really want to share, so I am posting this. The fire was not put out by the firefighters who arrived on the scene. The truth I want to tell you is about the three heroes of our apartment."
The photo Mr. A posted along with the article shows three men, who appear to be residents, holding fire extinguishers and heading toward the burning vehicle. Mr. A explained, "The apartment structure does not connect the underground and above-ground apartments, so the damage to each household was minimal. However, on the other hand, the ventilation is poor, and the vehicle fire occurred in a location farthest inside on the second basement level, away from the entrance and exit." He added, "Even though there is an emergency staircase right next to it, if the flames spread, it could become a passage for toxic gases, making evacuation difficult and extremely dangerous. But as soon as they heard about the fire, those people instinctively rushed toward it without hesitation." Mr. A continued, "Those residents carried out the initial fire suppression, and the fire department only arrived when the smoke had thickened."
The fire, which initially broke out around 7:32 p.m. on July 31, was reportedly extinguished by the fire authorities within about 20 minutes using 20 pieces of equipment and over 50 personnel. However, the residents responded to the fire even faster than the firefighters. Regarding the residents' quick response, Mr. A said, "A resident who was going out noticed the fire early and posted it in the chat room, which was a stroke of genius. The representatives of the residents' association, who were gathered for a meeting, saw it and rushed over at an incredible timing." He added, "It is frustrating to see it portrayed as if the fire department handled everything without the sacrifice of the three who risked their lives to put out the fire."
A fire recently broke out in the underground parking lot of an apartment complex in Gyeyang-gu, Incheon, but the quick response of the residents helped prevent major damage, drawing attention. On the 3rd, an online community called BobaeDream posted an article titled "Another truth about the vehicle fire in Incheon underground parking lot, please spread the word." [Photo by online community 'BobaeDream']
Two of those who fought the fire later had to be hospitalized due to aftereffects. Mr. A said, "Two of the three had difficulty breathing and a foreign body sensation in their throats over the weekend, so they received medical treatment." He explained the reason for posting, saying, "I hope they recover without any aftereffects, but I couldn't just watch quietly as the public credit disappeared, especially since we don't know what effects the various harmful substances from that vehicle might have."
Meanwhile, the initial ignition of the fire occurred in an SUV parked in the underground parking lot. CCTV footage of the fire shows the driver moving away after parking. Then, sparks fell from under the SUV's hood, and the fire quickly spread throughout the engine compartment. The fire authorities are currently investigating the exact cause of the accident.
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