A large fire occurred at a car parts factory in Daejeon city, central South Korea, at about 1:18 PM on March 20, injuring at least 55 people, including 24 seriously injured. Authorities warn that the number of victims may continue to increase as searches are still ongoing, according to SCMP on March 20.
The South Korean national fire prevention agency said the fire likely originated from an explosion, causing the fire to spread quickly in the factory area.
A building in the complex was completely destroyed, while firefighters could not access inside due to the risk of collapse. Mr. Nam Deuk-woo, commander of Daedeok District Fire Department, said authorities are searching for at least 14 people believed to be present in the factory when the fire broke out.
Police used mobile phone signals to locate those who lost contact. According to officials, some victims were injured by inhaling toxic smoke, while many others had to jump out of the building to escape when the fire flared up fiercely.
Images at the scene show a dense gray smoke column covering the entire industrial park.
Firefighting work encountered many difficulties when one of the works collapsed, and at the same time there were about 200kg of chemicals in the factory, forcing functional forces to both extinguish the fire and urgently remove dangerous substances to prevent the risk of fire spreading or further explosion.
More than 500 firefighters, police and emergency responders were mobilized, along with about 120 vehicles, including fire trucks and specialized robots operating in dangerous environments.
The burned factory was identified as being operated by Anjun Industrial, a unit that produces engine components and supplies to major automakers such as Hyundai Motor and Kia Corp.
Faced with the serious developments of the incident, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung directed the mobilization of all resources to control the fire and support rescue and relief work.
Up to now, authorities have not confirmed any cases in critical condition, and continue to investigate the exact cause of the explosion that led to the fire.
