Guryong Village Fire Extinguished After Over 12 Hours Overnight

 
A fire that broke out in Guryong Village, Gaepo-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, was completely extinguished early today (October 28) following overnight firefighting efforts.

Fire authorities announced that the fire in Guryong Village was fully put out at around 4:40 a.m., and the Level 1 response was lifted.

This came 12 hours and 49 minutes after the fire started in a temporary building in District 2 of the village at around 3:50 p.m. yesterday.

A Level 1 response is an emergency alert that mobilizes all personnel and equipment from the jurisdictional fire station.

Firefighters contained the major flames at around 2:20 a.m. and continued to put out remaining spot fires.

The fire also partially spread to the nearby Mount Guryong, but it was completely extinguished after clearing residual flames.

A woman in her 30s suffered minor leg injuries in the blaze, but no other casualties have been confirmed.

Driven by the wind, the fire spread to Districts 1, 3, and 7.

Fire authorities deployed 232 personnel and 110 pieces of equipment, including 6 helicopters, to fight the blaze, but faced difficulties due to darkness, water shortages, and strong winds.

Fire authorities issued a Level 1 response at 3:59 p.m. yesterday, and as the flames spread, upgraded it to a Level 2 response at 4:29 p.m.

Later, at around 10:05 p.m., determining that the fire was no longer spreading, they downgraded it back to a Level 1 response.

A large amount of smoke generated from the fire scene was visible even from Dobong-gu in Seoul and Anyang in Gyeonggi Province.

Nearby residents reported hearing loud explosions multiple times, believed to be exploding gas cylinders.

The village is densely packed with shanties built from flammable materials such as cotton batting used for insulation, vinyl, and plywood, which allowed the flames to spread rapidly, while fire engines also faced difficulties entering the area.

Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders and power lines are tangled throughout the village, further complicating firefighting operations.

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