[Anchor]

Residents in an apartment complex in Busan are protesting after learning that toxic chemical products were used without even minimal safety screens to remove exterior stains. Criticism is mounting that safety complacency has crossed the line, especially since the residents caught workers doing the exact same thing just months ago and strongly denounced them.

Here is a report from KNN reporter Kim Min-sung.

[Reporter]

This is an apartment complex in Haeundae-gu, Busan.

Workers on an aerial work platform are painting and spraying water on the exterior walls of the apartment.

They are trying to remove stains from the exterior, but the substance applied with the brush is toxic.

This is a container of liquid found at the work site.

The workers were applying a product known as an efflorescence remover to the walls, and a closer look reveals that it is mixed with nitric acid and phosphoric acid.

Nitric acid and phosphoric acid are strongly acidic and can cause skin burns or damage to the eyes and respiratory system.

The remover even carried an acute toxicity warning label.

Yet the work was carried out right above the residents' heads without any prior notice requiring caution and without any protective screens.

[Lee Young-jin / Apartment Resident: Droplets containing nitric acid and other things were drifting around, making it look very dangerous. It is a place where many people always walk when children go to school, and....]

Back in May, a construction company at this same apartment complex used a cleaning agent mixed with hydrochloric acid for defect repairs, prompting protests from residents.

Now, they have been caught using toxic substances once again without safety measures.

[Kim Tae-seok / President, Apartment Resident Representative Council: We asked them to prepare preventive measures so that there would be no damage, and we even received a firm promise that they would do so, but....]

Experts also point out that safety measures to prevent secondary harm to residents were inadequate.

[Hong Seung-chul / Professor, Department of Occupational Safety and Health, Inje University: Short-term acute effects are relevant to the workers, but the impact on residents constitutes secondary harm. Because of the pressure of the water being sprayed, it is bound to splatter everywhere....]

The construction company issued an apology for the lack of safety measures and stated that it will proceed with further work only after receiving approval for the work plan from the residents.

(Photo: KNN / Video by Taeyong Kim | Video Editing by Lee So-min)

Kim Min-sung, KNN