Total Compensation Reaches 8 Million Won
Administrative Liability Insurer Says "No Payout"
The fire department, which forcibly opened the door to search for victims in a villa fire, is now in a position where it must compensate for the damaged front door. The amount reaches several million won.
According to the fire department on the 23rd, the Gwangju Northern Fire Station responded to a report of a fire on the second floor of a four-story villa in Sinan-dong, Buk-gu, Gwangju, around 3 a.m. on the 11th of last month. The scene was filled with thick black smoke throughout the building because the front door of the unit where the fire started was open.
Firefighters simultaneously conducted fire suppression and rescue operations. They knocked on the doors of each unit on the 2nd and 3rd floors and evacuated five residents outside. They rescued two residents who had gone up to the rooftop to escape the smoke. Two people on the first floor evacuated on their own.
There were six units that did not respond even after knocking. The firefighters judged that, given the early hour, residents might have been in a deep sleep or already inhaled smoke, so they forcibly opened the front doors. During this process, the locks and front doors were damaged.
Subsequently, the villa residents demanded compensation from the fire department for the damaged front doors and locks caused by the forced opening during the search. The compensation cost amounted to 1.3 million won per household, totaling about 8 million won for six units.
Typically, property damage incurred during fire suppression is compensated by the homeowner of the unit where the fire started through fire insurance. However, the resident in their 30s who lived in the unit where the fire began was transferred to the hospital but passed away, making it impossible to hold them liable for compensation.
The fire station, now responsible for compensation, inquired with the administrative liability insurance company they were already subscribed to about the possibility of insurance coverage for the damages but received a response that it was "not possible."
This insurance only pays for losses caused by firefighters' mistakes or illegal acts. They judged that "damages occurring during lawful search and rescue operations cannot be compensated." The firefighters involved in this fire maintain that since the property was damaged during a lawful search and rescue procedure, compensation should be provided by the residential fire insurance company.
The Northern Fire Station is exploring various compensation measures, including using the fire headquarters' own budget.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
