Gyeongbuk Province Sees Sharp 40% Drop in Fire Damage in Q1 Compared to Same Period Last Year

The Number of Cases Decreased by Only 2.6%... But Human Casualties Fell by 37% and Property Damage by 42%

On the morning of April 5th, a fire broke out in a two-story commercial-residential building inside Bukmun Market in Andong-si, Gyeongbuk. Firefighters are working to extinguish the fire. Two people in their 40s, a man and a woman, who were in the second-floor residence, died in the fire.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Dongwook Park] The human and property damage caused by fires in Gyeongsangbuk-do during the first quarter (January to March) has significantly decreased compared to the same period last year.

The Gyeongbuk provincial government analyzed that efforts to strengthen the maintenance and management of firefighting facilities, along with a reduction in industrial facility fires, greatly contributed to this outcome.

According to Gyeongbuk Province on the 5th, there were 782 fire incidents in the province during the first quarter of this year, resulting in 48 casualties (9 deaths and 39 injuries) and property damage amounting to approximately 8.3 billion KRW (3.4 billion KRW in real estate and 4.9 billion KRW in movable property).

Compared to the same period last year, the number of incidents decreased by 21 cases (2.6%), human casualties dropped by 37.6% (29 people), and property damage was reduced by 42.1% (about 6.1 billion KRW).

By location, industrial facilities such as factories and warehouses saw an 18% decrease (30 cases), forests, rice paddies, and fields decreased by 33.7% (30 cases), and living service facilities such as restaurants and retail stores decreased by 30.4% (17 cases). It was identified that fires significantly decreased in the economic infrastructure and locations of the residents.

By cause, negligence accounted for 397 cases, electrical causes for 146 cases, and unknown causes for 109 cases. Specifically, among the factors for the decrease, unknown causes dropped by 33.1% (54 cases), unattended embers or flames by 20.8% (22 cases), garbage burning by 19.8% (17 cases), and field burning by 17.6% (3 cases).

Nam Hwayeong, head of the Gyeongbuk Fire Headquarters, stated, “With the transition of firefighting to a national system, we will implement more proactive and effective fire safety policies,” adding, “We will do our best to ensure that residents can live safe and happy lives through thorough firefighting training in preparation for emergencies.”

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