Police book representative of Bucheon fire factory where firefighter died... cause investigation

Charges of malpractice and malpractice… Check safety management status

(Suwon = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Ji-won = Police have booked the factory representative in connection with a fire at a factory in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, in which one firefighter died and seven others were injured.

The Gyeonggi Southern Police Agency's Bucheon paint factory fire accident investigation team announced on the 18th that it had booked the factory representative, Mr. A (in his 70s), on charges of occupational negligence causing injury and occupational misfire.

Mr. A is suspected of neglecting fire prevention measures at a metal injection printing factory in Nae-dong, Ojeong-gu, Bucheon, where a fire broke out on the 16th.

On the 17th, the day after the fire, the police investigated five factory officials, including Mr. A and an employee, as witnesses and confirmed the work situation and safety management at the time of the accident. Afterwards, Mr. A was found to have been negligent in causing the fire and was booked.

The police plan to investigate Mr. A in detail about the circumstances surrounding the ignition and whether he complied with safety management rules, and will also continue to investigate other officials. Depending on the results of the investigation, the number of people booked may increase.

We also plan to confirm the circumstances of the death of the firefighter who died after being isolated during the firefighting process.

In relation to this, the fire headquarters of the National Civil Service Workers' Union, a member of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, issued a statement on the day of the fire, urging a thorough investigation into the firefighters' internal entry decision process and the appropriateness of the on-site command.

Earlier, at 8:38 a.m. on the 16th, a fire broke out at a metal injection printing factory in Nae-dong, Ojeong-gu, Bucheon, killing a firefighter in his 40s who was assigned to extinguish the fire, and five other firefighters and two factory officials were injured.

In a joint investigation conducted the following day, it was raised that the fire may have started when sparks generated by static electricity flew into the oil vapor generated during cleaning using thinner on the third floor of the factory.

At the time, the site was not equipped with explosion-proof equipment despite the risk of fire due to oil vapor, and dozens of containers containing flammable substances such as thinner and paint were discovered near the point of ignition. The possibility that these flammable substances may have contributed to the spread of the fire is also being investigated.