KOR
▲ The late Fire Inspector Kim Jin-seok, who died in the line of duty
The funeral hall at Soonchunhyang University Hospital in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, echoed with relentless weeping on the morning of October 17.
The mortuary for the late Fire Inspector Kim Jin-seok, who died in the line of duty during a fire at a metal injection printing factory in Naedong, Ojeong-gu, Bucheon, yesterday, was a scene of grief.
The sudden death of the head of the household, who leaves behind a young daughter scheduled to enter elementary school next year, plunged the funeral hall into an ocean of tears.
Adding to the heartbreak, it was reported that Fire Inspector Kim and his wife, a daycare assistant teacher, were planning to move into a new home in an apartment in Gyeonggi Province in just two weeks.
According to the bereaved family, Fire Inspector Kim, an 11-year veteran firefighter, was approaching the end of his 24-hour shift at 9:00 AM yesterday.
However, upon hearing news of the fire at 8:38 AM, Fire Inspector Kim boarded the fire engine without hesitation.
It was just about 20 minutes before his off-duty time.
Fire Inspector Kim and three others who arrived as the first response team immediately entered the third floor of the building to suppress the fire, but as flames spread in an instant, two people including him were trapped inside.
A colleague who had entered with him was barely rescued, but Fire Inspector Kim was found about 27 minutes later, located roughly 5 meters deeper inside.
He was already in a state of cardiac arrest.
The older sister of Fire Inspector Kim's wife wailed, saying, "I was told that his gas mask was off when he was found, and when I asked the fire department, they said 'it has a triple-lock system so it normally doesn't come off, but it seems to have melted from the heat.' During the delayed rescue time, he had to inhale toxic fumes entirely."
When he arrived at the hospital, his condition was too devastating to look at with open eyes.
With medical staff giving opinions that even if his breathing miraculously returned, he would likely remain in a vegetative state, the family had to prepare their hearts in advance.
The bereaved family strongly criticized the on-site command and rescue system, asking, "Would you have pushed your own child into that inferno?"
He said, "Factory workers had already evacuated outside and additional life rescue was unnecessary, yet I don't know why they sent an officer on the verge of getting off work into the jaws of death without even a minimum grasp of the situation."
He raised his voice, stating, "If it was a dangerous situation, they should have had him withdraw immediately or deployed additional personnel. In the end, this is a disaster brought about by the command's misjudgment and the lack of an on-site control system."
He appealed, "The state always emphasizes the golden time, but my son-in-law missed the golden time due to a delayed rescue. We must thoroughly overhaul the safety system so that such vain sacrifices are not repeated."
Earlier, a fire broke out at a metal injection printing factory in Naedong, Ojeong-gu, Bucheon, at around 8:38 AM yesterday and was extinguished 2 hours and 28 minutes later.
The fire killed Fire Inspector Kim and left another firefighter in his 40s seriously injured.
In addition, a total of eight people suffered light to severe injuries, including four other firefighters receiving hospital treatment for heat exhaustion symptoms and two factory officials for smoke inhalation.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.
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