"Even Buildings Nearby Shook with Loud Bangs"... Ulsan Shrouded in Thick Black Smoke

A large-scale 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 (October 14) while toluene in a storage tank was being transferred into 200-liter drum containers at a chemical manufacturing plant in Onsan-eup, Ulju-gun, Ulsan.

The flames quickly spread through drum containers in the surrounding open-air yard to seven outdoor storage tanks containing toluene, thinner, and acetone.

An employee, identified by the surname A from a nearby workplace, said, "I saw black smoke soaring out the window from the third floor of the office building, and about a minute later, there was a loud explosion that shook the building. It made a heavy sound, and all the employees were startled."

A added, "Even after the first explosion, loud banging sounds were heard at intervals of several minutes for five to six times. There was so much smoke that it covered the entire Onsan Industrial Complex, and the sky looked completely pitch black," conveying the tense situation at the time.


Workers at the Shaheen Project construction site, where large petrochemical facilities are being built nearby, also stopped working and evacuated after being startled by the explosion sounds.

Worker B, who was at the scene, said, "There was a loud banging sound, and it kept happening intermittently afterwards. The sound was still audible 10 and 20 minutes after the fire broke out."

B explained, "Everyone felt uneasy when we heard the explosions, and an order to suspend work was issued so we moved out immediately. Work was suspended because the smoke spread 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 petrochemical construction site and 16 employees of the company stopped working and evacuated.

Fortunately, no casualties have been confirmed so far.

Immediately after the fire, the fire authorities issued a Level 1 response followed by a national firefighting mobilization order, deploying helicopters and other resources to continue firefighting operations.

The Ulsan city government urged, "To ensure water supply for firefighting operations, vehicles are completely restricted in areas along Dangwol-ro, Onsan-ro, and Bangdo-ro. Vehicles passing through the vicinity are requested to detour."

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