Prime Minister Jeong: "There Must Be a Deep Reflection on Repeated Large Fires at Construction Sites"

"Best Efforts in Treating and Caring for the Injured... Ensuring No Neglect in Victim Support"
"Thorough Investigation of Fire Causes by Relevant Agencies... Review of Supervision and Accident Response"

Prime Minister Jeong Sye-kyun

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said on the 30th regarding the large fire at the Icheon logistics warehouse, "There must be a profound reflection on the repeated occurrence of large fires at construction sites."

On the same day, Prime Minister Chung held a meeting with related ministers at the Government Seoul Office regarding the Icheon fire accident and stated, "In January 2008, a fire occurred at a frozen warehouse in Icheon during the application of flammable urethane foam, resulting in the deaths of about 40 people. The fire authorities estimate that this fire was caused by an explosion during urethane work, similar to the accident 12 years ago."

Prime Minister Chung said, "Yesterday afternoon, a large fire broke out at a logistics warehouse construction site in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, resulting in the tragic loss of thirty-eight lives. Amid the difficulties everyone is facing due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), I deeply apologize to the public for delivering such sad news."

He continued, "I pray for the souls of the victims who passed away in this accident and offer my deepest condolences to the bereaved families. The government will do its utmost to treat and care for the injured and will make every effort to ensure that support for the victims is not neglected."

He then instructed, "The Ministry of Employment and Labor, the National Fire Agency, the National Police Agency, and other related organizations should thoroughly investigate how the fire started, why the flames spread rapidly in a short time causing large-scale casualties, and the circumstances of this fire. It is necessary to carefully review whether safety standards and regulations were properly followed, whether the supervision by related agencies was appropriate, and whether there were any problems in the accident response."

Prime Minister Chung emphasized, "Practical measures are urgently needed to prevent such large fires from recurring. I ask the related agencies to remain vigilant and, once the accident recovery is completed, to establish fundamental measures to prevent recurrence based on a clear determination of the cause."

On the same day, Prime Minister Chung also promised a prompt resolution of the Icheon fire incident through his social network service (SNS).

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