"Nearby Buildings Shaken by Explosions"... Ulsan Shrouded in Thick Black Smoke

A major fire broke out at a chemical manufacturing plant in Ulsan, prompting about 7,000 people to evacuate.

The fire started at around 9:41 a.m. today (14th) while toluene inside a storage tank was being transferred into 200-liter drums at a chemical manufacturing facility in Onsan-eup, Ulju-gun, Ulsan.

The flames quickly spread through drums in a nearby yard to seven outdoor storage tanks containing toluene, thinner, and acetone.

Worker A from a nearby workplace said, "Black smoke could be seen soaring out of the window from the third floor of the office building, and about a minute later, there was a loud explosion strong enough to shake the building." They added, "It was a heavy sound that startled all the employees."

"Even after the first explosion, popping explosion sounds were heard five to six times at intervals of a few minutes," the worker recalled of the tense situation, adding, "There was so much smoke that it covered the entire Onsan Industrial Complex, and the sky looked completely pitch black."


Workers at the Shaheen Project construction site, which is building large petrochemical facilities nearby, also stopped working and evacuated after being startled by the explosions.

Worker B, who was at the site, said, "There was a loud popping sound, and it continued to be heard intermittently afterwards," adding, "The sounds kept going 10 and 20 minutes after the fire broke out."

"Everyone felt uneasy when we heard the explosions, and an order to suspend work was issued so we moved out immediately," the worker explained. "Work was halted because the smoke was spreading toward the construction site and there was a risk of additional explosions."

Due to the fire, about 7,000 workers at the nearby Shaheen Project large petrochemical facility construction site and 16 employees of the company halted work and evacuated.

Fortunately, no casualties have been confirmed so far.

Following the outbreak of the fire, firefighting authorities issued Level 1 response followed by a National Fire Mobilization Order, deploying helicopters and other resources to continue firefighting operations.

The Ulsan City government urged, "To supply water for firefighting, traffic is completely restricted along parts of Dangwol-ro, Onsan-ro, and Bangdo-ro, so vehicles passing through the area are requested to take detour routes."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.