674 Government Computer Systems Halted
436 Public-Facing Services Affected
Fire Authorities Fully Extinguish Blaze by 6 p.m. on the 27th
Of the 647 government computer systems that were halted due to the fire at the National Information Resources Service (NIRS) in Daejeon, 436 were found to be services directly used by the public.
Fire authorities stated that it took 22 hours to extinguish the fire, which started in a lithium-ion battery, and that the fire was completely put out around 6 p.m. on the day after the incident, September 27. The government announced that it is making every effort to restore the affected systems.
According to a report released by the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters as of 5 p.m. on September 27, "Of the 647 computer systems, 436 are public-facing services directly used by citizens, while the remaining 211 are internal administrative network services for government employees."
The suspended services include the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission's e-People petition platform, the Ministry of Science and ICT's Internet Post Office, the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Bokjiro and Social Service Portal, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's Government24, National Secretary, Mobile ID, Information Disclosure System, Onnara Document, Safety Sinmungo, and Safety Didimdol, as well as the Public Procurement Service's Nara Marketplace and Integrated Shopping Mall, among others.
On the 27th, firefighters are moving around at the National Information Resources Service (NIRS) in Yuseong District, Daejeon. Photo by Yonhap News
The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters also reported that the fire broke out around 8:15 p.m. the previous day in the computer room on the fifth floor of the National Information Resources Service. It is believed that the fire was ignited when a spark occurred from one of the lithium batteries being replaced by 13 workers.
As a result of the fire, 100 people evacuated on their own, and one worker sustained first-degree burns. It is estimated that 384 batteries were completely destroyed.
The National Fire Agency announced that the fire, which started at around 8:28 p.m. the previous day, was fully extinguished by around 6 p.m. the following day, after approximately 22 hours.
Accordingly, the fire authorities disbanded the Central Emergency Rescue Control Team and transitioned to a situation response team.
The fire authorities placed the lithium-ion batteries that caught fire in the computer room in a water tank for two to three days. Additional safety measures were implemented to prevent possible re-ignition.
Fire, police, and other relevant agencies plan to conduct a joint inspection soon to investigate the exact cause of the fire and assess the extent of the damage.
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