Fire at Korean car parts factory kills 14, injures 60
Videos and photos from the scene showed thick gray smoke billowing from the complex and some workers jumping from a building.
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SEOUL: Fourteen people died and 25 were seriously injured in a fire at a car parts factory in the South Korean city of Daejeon, fire authorities said on Saturday (Mar 21).
The fire broke out around lunchtime on Friday and was contained by 11.48pm (10.48, Singapore time), the safety ministry said.
Another 35 people suffered minor injuries, the fire authorities added.
They said the factory was owned by Anjun Industrial, which makes engine valves and is a supplier for Hyundai and Kia, among others, according to its website.
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Reuters was unable to contact Anjun for comment.
In a statement on the company's website, CEO Sohn Ju-hwan apologised, adding that it would fully cooperate with authorities, investigate the cause of the accident, review its safety systems and inspections and swiftly implement all necessary measures to prevent a recurrence.
The government activated a centralised disaster management system after President Lee Jae Myung ordered all available resources to be used to deal with the fire and save lives.
The fire authorities said that one victim was found on the first floor, four on the second, and nine on the third.
More than 500 firefighters, police and emergency personnel were deployed to contain the fire and conduct rescue operations after the fire broke out.
Videos and photos from the scene showed thick grey smoke billowing from the complex and some workers jumping from a building.
Nam Deuk-woo, fire chief of the city’s Daedeok district, said the blaze destroyed a factory building that firefighters initially could not enter over fears it might collapse.
A total of 170 workers were in the plant when the fire started, according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency.
Nam said the cause was not immediately known, but the blaze appeared to have spread rapidly, with witnesses reporting an explosion.
Firefighters focused on preventing the blaze from spreading to an adjacent facility and removing chemicals from the site. Nam said workers recovered more than 100kg of highly reactive chemicals from the site.
Some people were injured when they jumped from the building to escape, while others suffered from smoke inhalation, Nam said.
About 120 vehicles and pieces of equipment, including aircraft, an unmanned water cannon vehicle and two firefighting robots for hard-to-reach areas, were deployed along with hundreds of personnel.
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