Seoul Fire & Disaster Headquarters Uncovers 5 Companies Importing and Selling Unauthorized Firefighting Equipment

Request for Investigation to the Three Relevant Jurisdictional Fire Special Judicial Police Departments

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] The Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters announced on the 16th that the 119 Metropolitan Investigation Unit deployed to crack down on five companies that imported and sold firefighting equipment without type approval.

The Fire and Disaster Headquarters conducted surprise inspections on 15 companies over five days from December 2 to 6 last year.

As a result of the crackdown, five companies were caught and referred for prosecution for importing and selling single-station smoke detectors, a residential firefighting facility, without type approval, and three companies were transferred to the relevant jurisdiction. Unapproved single-station smoke detectors are dangerous as their fire alarm performance cannot be guaranteed. The three companies transferred to other jurisdictions are located in different cities or provinces, and investigations have been requested to the respective special fire judicial police departments.

The Seoul 119 Metropolitan Investigation Unit not only investigates the violating companies but also took measures to immediately recall and dispose of unapproved firefighting equipment already in circulation. They are also consulting with related departments to verify type approval status from the import stage before distribution.

Kwon Tae-mi, Head of the On-site Response Team, said, "When purchasing firefighting equipment, you must check whether the national certification mark is attached and verify the type approval number."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.