[Anchor]
A major fire broke out early this morning (August 11) at a hazardous materials storage warehouse in Cheongbuk-eup, Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province. No injuries have been reported so far, but firefighters are still working to extinguish the blaze, requiring continued monitoring.
Reporter Choi Seung-hun has the details.
[Reporter]
Bright red flames soar above the warehouse building, and thick black smoke billows into the sky.
The fire broke out at around 12:03 AM today at a hazardous materials storage warehouse in Cheongbuk-eup, Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province.
Firefighters dispatched after receiving an automated fire detection system alert witnessed flames inside the warehouse. No casualties have been confirmed as of yet.
[Fire Witness: The exterior walls of the building kept catching fire. (Firefighters) were also spraying water. I saw many scenes of continuous explosions.]
The site of the fire is a single-story warehouse storing Class 4 hazardous materials, which are flammable liquids. It was found to contain approximately 1.91 million liters of about 100 different chemical substances.
As the risk of the fire spreading grew high, fire authorities issued Response Stage 1 at 1:32 AM, mobilizing personnel and equipment from the jurisdictional fire station.
At 2:40 AM, the response level was raised to Stage 2, mobilizing nearby fire stations, and at 3:39 AM, a National Fire Mobilization Order was issued to bring in firefighting forces from other regions.
Consequently, 26 additional fire vehicles, including water tanker trucks, chemical trucks, and recovery support vehicles, were mobilized from South Chungcheong, Sejong, North Chungcheong, and Daejeon.
Although the response level was lowered back to Stage 1 at 5:16 AM, the National Fire Mobilization Order remains in effect, with 238 firefighters and 95 pieces of equipment deployed to carry out firefighting operations.
Pyeongtaek City advised nearby residents to keep windows closed, refrain from going outside, and detour their vehicles around the site.
(Video by Joo Yong-jin | Video Editing by Lee Sang-min)
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