Seoul City Provides Medical Expense Support to 571 Firefighters Exposed to Harmful Environments

Since 2018, Over 4,400 Cases and 10,700 People Reported
Most Transfers for Suspected COVID-19 Symptoms

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] The Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters announced on the 11th that it has provided hospital treatment expenses and other support to 571 firefighters who were exposed to hazardous environments while performing emergency medical and rescue activities at disaster sites.

According to the Fire and Disaster Headquarters, since the launch of the "On-site Civil Complaints Team" in January 2018, which is responsible for compensating damages and losses incurred during rescue and emergency medical activities, a total of 4,454 cases involving 10,712 exposures to hazardous environments have been reported to date.

The On-site Civil Complaints Team manages the records and provides health management expenses such as medical fees or supports related administrative procedures when personnel exposed to hazardous environments during field activities report the incidents.

Representative cases include transporting suspected patients of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), tuberculosis, cholera, measles, and other infectious diseases, as well as recovering hazardous substances such as formalin leaks. Unexpected situations such as being bitten by a dog during field activities or being pricked by a needle while transporting patients are also included.

By exposure type, the most frequent cases were transporting suspected patients of new infectious diseases (COVID-19) with 4,196 cases. This was followed by tuberculosis with 115 cases, needle or blood sugar lancet injuries with 29 cases, carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) with 14 cases, and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) with 12 cases. Additionally, there were risks of exposure to various hazardous environments such as cholera, measles, formalin, and ferric chloride.

In particular, this year, due to the spread of COVID-19, the number of suspected patient transports by the 119 emergency medical team surged, leading to a significant increase in reported hazardous environment exposure cases. Between January and the end of May alone, there were 4,225 cases (10,108 people), nearly 40 times higher compared to 106 cases in 2018 and 123 cases in 2019.

The Fire and Disaster Headquarters has processed 2,575 of the reported cases so far, providing medical fees, meal expenses, and other support to 571 individuals (208 cases) who required hospital treatment or self-quarantine. Furthermore, systematic health management was supported through record management and isolation in infection observation rooms for suspected COVID-19 patients or those exposed to hazardous substances.

However, there have been no cases of firefighters receiving treatment due to infection after transporting suspected COVID-19 patients.

The remaining 1,879 cases are currently being processed.

Shin Yeol-woo, head of the Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters, stated, "We will do our best to support our personnel so that they can perform their duties with greater peace of mind while working on-site."

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