National Fire Agency Raises Nationwide Fire Risk Alert to 'Serious' Amid Heatwave

The National Fire Agency announced that it has upgraded its nationwide fire risk alert for fire departments from 'Alert' to 'Serious' effective as of 3:00 PM today (August 5), as the ongoing heatwave increases the risk of fires involving electrical facilities and cooling appliances.

With heatwave warnings currently in effect across most parts of the country, severe heatwave warnings are also active in parts of the Seoul metropolitan area and the Jeolla region.

Scorching heat with a maximum perceived temperature of around 35°C (95°F) is expected to continue nationwide for the time being.

The National Fire Agency has been operating an emergency duty system centered around its Heatwave 119 Safety Countermeasures Headquarters since August 2.

The ongoing heatwave has also led to an increase in the number of fires.

The average daily number of fires was 84.4 from July 1 to 9, but rose 19.4% to 100.8 from July 10 to 27.

From July 27 to August 4, the daily average further increased by 15.9% from the previous period to 116.9.

The National Fire Agency plans to maintain the fire risk alert until it is lifted, while strengthening the fire response readiness of fire stations nationwide.

It intends to intensively publicize fire prevention rules during the heatwave period using disaster broadcasting and safety text messages, while requiring fire station heads to remain on command duty and inspect the response readiness of available firefighting forces and dispatch equipment.

Song Ho-young, Director General of the Fire Prevention Bureau at the National Fire Agency, urged, "During periods of sustained heatwave, prolonged use of cooling appliances such as air conditioners and electric fans is highly likely to cause overloads in electrical facilities. Please strictly follow everyday fire prevention rules, such as unplugging unused electrical appliances and removing dust and combustible materials from around air conditioner outdoor units."
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.