"Smell of Burning from Somewhere"... Fire at Suwon Electronics Factory Extinguished in 3 Hours

All 60 Workers Safely Evacuated

At 9:34 a.m. on the 19th, a fire broke out at a four-story electronic components factory in Woncheon-dong, Yeongtong-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi Province. The fire was extinguished after about three hours.

On the morning of the 19th, smoke is rising into the sky from a fire at an electronics factory in Yeongtong-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do. Photo by Yonhap News

According to Yonhap News, the fire occurred on the third floor of a steel-framed building with a total floor area of about 8,700㎡, consisting of four floors above ground and one basement level. A factory official reported to 119, saying, "The fire broke out in the production building on the third floor of the factory." Bright red flames were visible through broken windows, and firefighters were working to extinguish the fire nearby.

All 60 people who were inside the factory at the time of the fire evacuated safely, and there were no reported casualties.

The Suwon City government sent a safety alert message stating, "Fire and black smoke occurred at the factory. Vehicles should detour around the area roads, and nearby citizens are advised to take safety precautions."

On the morning of the 19th, a fire broke out at an electronics factory in Yeongtong-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do, and firefighters are conducting extinguishing operations. Photo by Gyeonggi-do Fire and Disaster Headquarters

The fire department issued a Level 1 response alarm at 9:48 a.m. (an alert involving 3 to 7 fire stations deploying 31 to 50 pieces of equipment). Subsequently, 32 pieces of equipment including pump trucks and 95 personnel were deployed, and the fire was extinguished after about three hours. The fire department declared initial containment (a stage where the fire is controlled and there is no risk of further spread) at 12:35 p.m. and lifted the emergency alert at 12:48 p.m.

The fire reportedly started in three out of 30 condenser manufacturing machines. Flammable materials such as petroleum and alcohol were stored in an outdoor storage facility outside the factory. The fire department plans to investigate the detailed cause of the fire once the extinguishing operations are fully completed.

Meanwhile, after the fire, netizens reacted with comments such as "There is thick black smoke in Suwon," "I smelled something strange and opened the window to find a fire," "The black smoke is intense," and "Hope there are no casualties."