Mandatory Installation of 'Sprinklers' in Newly Established Kindergartens, Special Schools, and School Dormitories Starting from the 7th of Next Month

Lee Juho: "Rapid Initial Response Possible in Case of Fire"

From the 7th of next month onwards, newly established kindergartens, special schools, dormitories and boarding facilities of elementary, middle, high schools, and universities, as well as temporary classrooms, must mandatorily install fire safety equipment such as automatic sprinklers. Previously, fire safety equipment was installed based on area and other factors, but going forward, all kindergartens and school dormitories must install such equipment regardless of these factors.

On the 21st, the Ministry of Education announced that the partial amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Act on the Safety and Maintenance of Educational Facilities (Education Facilities Act), which includes these provisions, was reviewed and approved at the Cabinet meeting held at the Government Seoul Office.

This amendment is a follow-up measure to the Education Facilities Act revised last year, specifying detailed regulations on the installation of fire safety equipment. Before the 2022 revision of the Education Facilities Act, there was no mandatory regulation requiring the installation of fire safety equipment in kindergartens and school dormitories. Instead, installation was based on the Fire Safety Facilities Installation and Management Act, which regulates fire extinguishing and fire safety equipment according to the type and scale of fire targets. However, there were calls to mandate the installation of fire safety equipment such as sprinklers, which are effective for early fire suppression regardless of the area of educational facilities. This is because young children and students may find it difficult to evacuate quickly in case of fire, potentially leading to major accidents.

Accordingly, the amendment was passed at the National Assembly plenary session in January last year, and from February 7th this year, newly established (new construction, extension, reconstruction, rebuilding, relocation) educational facilities including kindergartens, special schools, and dormitories, boarding facilities, and temporary classrooms of elementary, middle, high schools, and universities must install fire safety equipment such as sprinklers.

The budget required for installing fire safety equipment can be partially supported by the national or local governments. Additionally, the construction methods for temporary classrooms (such as modular classrooms) have been defined to specify the obligation to ensure safety.

Lee Ju-ho, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, stated, "With the amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Education Facilities Act, detailed standards for installing fire safety equipment in schools have been established, so we expect rapid initial response in case of fire."

However, there are concerns that educational facilities installed before the enforcement date of this amendment will be excluded from the mandatory installation of fire safety equipment.

A Ministry of Education official said, "Since 2021, before the amendment to the Education Facilities Act was enacted, each metropolitan and provincial office of education has been installing sprinklers in existing educational facilities. Although construction delays during the semester may cause about a one-year delay from the original target, the plan to install sprinklers in all elementary, middle, and high school dormitories by 2026 is still being pursued as planned."