Jeong Kwang-hoon, head of the fire administration division at Gangnam Fire Station, briefs reporters at the scene of a fire in Guryong Village in Seoul on Friday. Photo by Asia Today
Jan. 16 (Asia Today) — Firefighters contained a blaze in Guryong Village in Seoul’s Gangnam district on Friday and were extinguishing remaining hot spots as investigators began examining the cause, officials said.
No casualties were reported, authorities said.
Jeong Kwang-hoon, head of the fire administration division at Seoul’s Gangnam Fire Station, told reporters at the scene that the response level was lowered to Level 1 after the initial firefighting phase was completed.
The fire started around 5 a.m. Friday. Authorities issued a Level 1 response at about 5:10 a.m. and raised it to Level 2 at about 8:49 a.m., then contained the main flames at about 11:34 a.m. and downgraded the response to Level 1.
Officials said 1,258 personnel were mobilized, including 343 firefighters, 320 district office workers and 560 police officers. They deployed 106 pieces of equipment, including pump trucks, water tankers and rescue vehicles.
The fire spread from District 4 to District 6 of the settlement, authorities said. Firefighters set defensive lines in Districts 3 and 5 to prevent further spread.
Jeong said narrow access roads made it difficult for fire trucks to enter at once and that many homes used combustible materials such as cotton batting, vinyl and styrofoam, complicating suppression efforts.
Officials said 258 residents were evacuated. The Seoul Metropolitan Government and other agencies set up a temporary shelter at Guryong Middle School and arranged accommodations at nearby lodging facilities.
Fire authorities said they plan to identify the ignition point and determine the specific cause.
— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI
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