LG awards 'Hero Award' to Tongyeong Coast Guard who died rescuing isolated diver

‘LG Hero Award’ Presented to Firefighter Lee Yoon-jin Who Stopped a Vehicle with His Body to Protect an Unconscious Driver

The late Police Sergeant Jeong Ho-jong (34)

[Asia Economy Reporter Changhwan Lee] LG Welfare Foundation announced on the 15th that it will award the ‘LG Hero Award’ to the late Sergeant Jeong Hojong (34), who died in the line of duty after being swept away by waves while rescuing two divers trapped in a sea cave, and Firefighter Lee Yoonjin (35), who stopped a vehicle with his body to save an unconscious driver inside a tunnel.

Sergeant Jeong, affiliated with the Tongyeong Maritime Police Station, responded to a report on the 6th that two divers doing skin scuba diving in Tongyeong City, Gyeongnam Province, were trapped after being pushed into a sea cave by high waves due to bad weather.

Sergeant Jeong and his fellow officers repeatedly threw lifelines from the boat toward the cave where the divers were trapped to rescue them, but faced difficulties due to the narrow cave entrance and severe weather. Without hesitation, the rescue team jumped into the rough sea, entered the cave, and began installing ropes to rescue the divers but became trapped inside the cave due to strong winds and waves.

Sergeant Jeong stayed in the water for over nine hours, showing signs of exhaustion, and was suddenly swept away by a rogue wave and went missing. He was found dead the next morning. The two divers, whom Sergeant Jeong stayed with until the end, and two fellow officers were safely rescued.

The late officer was a second-year rookie maritime police officer who, during his training days, was known to have pledged, “My dream is to become a maritime police officer who can be a miracle to the people,” and “I want to learn more and experience with my body so that I can extend the last hope to those in need of rescue.”

Additionally, LG Welfare Foundation decided to present the ‘LG Hero Award’ to Firefighter Lee Yoonjin of the Gimcheon Fire Station, who stopped a vehicle with his body to rescue a driver who lost consciousness while driving and prevented a secondary accident on the 19th of last month in Gimcheon City, Gyeongbuk Province.

On that day, around 5 p.m., Firefighter Lee witnessed a vehicle dangerously swaying between the first and second lanes inside the Gamcheon Tunnel in Gimcheon City, hitting the tunnel wall but continuing to drive.

Firefighter Yi Yunjin

Passing by the vehicle, Firefighter Lee immediately got out of his car upon seeing the driver unconscious, leaning his head against the window. He ran alongside the vehicle and knocked on the driver’s window, but when there was no response, he went to the front of the vehicle and blocked it with his body, managing to stop it dramatically after about 10 meters.

Firefighter Lee, along with other citizens at the scene, woke the driver who had lost consciousness due to a sudden seizure, moved him to a safe place, and stayed at the scene until the ambulance and police arrived, directing traffic to prevent secondary accidents.

A representative of LG Welfare Foundation said, “We decided to award this to honor the strong sense of duty and spirit of sacrifice of these uniformed heroes who risked their own safety to save lives by jumping into the sea and stopping a vehicle with their bare bodies, and to have our society remember their deeds together.”

The ‘LG Hero Award’ was established in 2015 reflecting the late Chairman Koo Bon-moo’s will that “the company repays its social responsibility to heroes who sacrificed themselves for the nation and social justice.” Since Chairman Koo Kwang-mo’s inauguration, the scope of recipients has expanded to include citizens who have performed exemplary acts and volunteer work in society, and to date, a total of 124 people have received the LG Hero Award.

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