Fire Breaks Out at Hazardous Materials Warehouse in Pyeongtaek; National Fire Mobilization Order Issued

Fire authorities have issued a national fire mobilization order to tackle a blaze that broke out at a hazardous materials storage warehouse in Tojin-ri, Cheongbuk-myeon, Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, at 12:03 AM today (August 11).

No casualties have been confirmed so far.

Citing concerns over the fire spreading, fire authorities issued Response Stage 1 at 1:32 AM, an hour and 20 minutes after the fire started, before upgrading it to Response Stage 2 at 2:40 AM.

They subsequently issued a national fire mobilization order as of 3:39 AM today.

Under the national fire mobilization order, 26 units of firefighting equipment—including 11 water tanker trucks, 11 chemical trucks, and 4 recovery support vehicles—were deployed from nearby regions, including South Chungcheong, Sejong, North Chungcheong, and Daejeon.

A national fire mobilization order is issued by the head of the National Fire Agency when a disaster, such as a fire, is difficult to manage solely with the firefighting capacity of a specific city or province, or when the deployment of national-level firefighting resources to the disaster site is deemed necessary.

A total of 95 pieces of equipment, including those mobilized from other regions, and 238 personnel have been deployed to the firefighting operations.

It was found that the warehouse where the fire broke out stores approximately 1.91 million liters of chemical substances, including around 100 types of Class 4 hazardous materials (flammable liquids).

Pyeongtaek City sent out an emergency alert advising nearby residents to "close windows, refrain from going outside, and detour vehicles."

The warehouse on fire is a single-story building with a total floor area of 937 square meters.

Fire authorities plan to investigate the exact cause and details of the fire once the flames are brought under control.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.