Over 180 Containers of Flammable Substances Found... What Amplified Bucheon Fire

[Anchor]

More details are emerging about the factors that compounded the tragic casualties among firefighters. During today's joint forensic inspection of the fire scene, authorities discovered more than 180 containers of flammable substances. It is suspected that the fire spread rapidly after igniting oil-mixed vapor.

Reporting from reporter Lee Tae-gwon.

[Reporter]

Investigators in protective gear enter the fire-damaged building.

Some 20 investigators from four agencies—including the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency, the fire department, the National Forensic Service, and the Korea Electrical Safety Corporation—conducted a joint inspection at the Bucheon factory fire site starting at 9:30 a.m.

The inspection aimed to determine the cause and propagation route of the fire, which resulted in a total of eight casualties, including the late firefighter Kim Jin-seok.

During the inspection, authorities confirmed about 180 containers filled with flammables such as thinner at the scene. The inspection team stated, "Some of them were left open," and presumed that the fire broke out when oil vapor ignited.

[Kim Hyo-sung / Head of the Crime Scene Investigation Unit, Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency: It contains a component called toluene, which generates oil vapor. We consider it most likely that static electricity, micro-electricity, or a spark caused by frictional heat ignited the vapor...]

In particular, the location where the thinner was stored was only 1 to 2 meters away from the metal cleaning room on the third floor where the fire broke out.

There is a possibility that the scale of the fire expanded rapidly after a two-person initial response team, including the late firefighter Kim Jin-seok, arrived on the third floor and the fire spread to the thinner containers.

[Kong Ha-sung / Professor of Fire Protection, Woosuk University: Oil vapor continuously escapes and settles on the floor, accumulating. Under such conditions, if an ignition source triggers an explosion in that cleaning room, a flash explosion can spread instantly throughout the entire room...]

When it was confirmed at 9:09 a.m. that the two firefighters were trapped, a Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) was deployed. However, due to the massive flames and smoke, rescue and transport were only completed 29 minutes later at 9:38 a.m.

[Kwon Young-gak / Head of the Firefighters' Union, Korean Government Employees' Union: The commander should have assessed what materials were present before ordering the (initial response team) to enter. There are suspicions that this procedure may have been missing...]

Police have formed a dedicated 33-member investigation team and are considering applying charges of professional negligence resulting in death to the business owner and others.

(Video by: Kim Han-gyeol | Video Editing by: Ahn Yeo-jin)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.