17 Fire Officials Placed on Leave Following Death of Female Firefighter in Gwangju

▲ Gwangju Gwangsan Fire Station

Seventeen fire officials have been placed on standby leave in connection with the death of a female firefighter in Gwangju.

The Gwangju Fire Safety Headquarters announced that it issued the standby orders on June 25 for a total of 17 personnel, including six from the Gwangju Fire Safety Headquarters, nine from the Gwangsan Fire Station, and two from the National Fire Agency, following a request for disciplinary action by the Government Joint Inspection Team under the Office for Government Policy Coordination.

The measure follows an investigation conducted by the Office for Government Policy Coordination from June 11 to 24, which confirmed violations of regulations by those responsible. This action comes approximately eight months after the death of the female firefighter, identified as Fire Lieutenant A of the Gwangsan Fire Station, in October of last year.

Those removed from their duties are currently not reporting to work and will be referred to a disciplinary committee to determine the level of punishment.

The Gwangju Fire Safety Headquarters plans to initiate disciplinary procedures after assessing the extent of involvement of those responsible once it receives the investigation report from the Office for Government Policy Coordination.

The Office for Government Policy Coordination, which investigated the death of the female firefighter under the directive of President Lee Jae-myung, uncovered various regulatory violations, including workplace bullying, forced attendance at drinking parties, and the dismissal of requests from the bereaved family for an internal inspection.

The investigation found that Fire Lieutenant A was effectively forced to attend drinking parties, participating in a total of 24 such events over 15 months. At some of these gatherings, she was reportedly pressured to finish "bomb shots" in one go.

In particular, it was confirmed that she was forced to sit next to male superiors, with instructions such as "Sit between the station chief and the division head" or "Sit next to the division head." She was also subjected to demands to prepare for various events for superiors and perform personal errands.

Regarding the bereaved family's request for an inspection into the death, it was found that the Gwangsan Fire Station concluded the investigation formally by stating there were "no unusual findings."

Based on the investigation results, the Office for Government Policy Coordination requested severe disciplinary action for the 17 fire officials found to have committed misconduct and also requested a police investigation into two retired fire officials who held supervisory responsibilities.

(Photo: Provided by Gwangju Gwangsan Fire Station, Yonhap News)

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